Darien Library
art final Drop It & Drive 5-12-16

Darien Kids Win Awards for ‘Stay off the Phone; Drop It & Drive’ Artwork

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Awards were given out Wednesday for artwork from Darien kids with the message “Stay off the phone when driving” as part of a “Drop It & Drive in Darien” competition meant to remind their parents. Elementary school students were asked to design a poster, and middle school students a couple of comic book pages with the theme “On the road equals off the phone: Let’s make Darien a safer community,” said Whitney Ball, a Darien mother and founder of “Drop It & Drive Darien.” Ball’s organization tries to get the safety message out around town. Darienite.com is a sponsor of the competition. In addition to getting a ribbon and a certificate (and having their artwork displayed through May at Darien Library), contest winners each received cash prizes of $25, $50 or $75.

Arts & Entertainment

Contest Deadlines are MONDAY for Drop It & Drive Posters (K-5) & Comic Books (Middle School)

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Get your kids creative juices flowing this weekend before the Monday deadline for the kids’ poster contest or the middle school comic book contest for Drop It & Drive in Darien. Your kid can win a prize in these contests and get a boost to motivate his or her creative art efforts. “Creative activities” was one of Darien’s lowest scoring assets in a recent town-wide poll of our youth. The Community Fund’s Thriving Youth encourages participation in this fun and meaningful challenge! Here’s what Darienite.com has already announced about these contests, and here are the contest posters — first the elementary school contest, then the one for Darien middle schoolers:
Drop It & Drive In Darien Poster Contest for Kids, Kindergarten Through 5th Grade
Drop It & Drive In Darien invites all Darien elementary school students to design a poster that promotes safer driving in our Darien community.

Arts & Entertainment
Drop It & Drive

Middle Schoolers: Create a Comic Book Sample For a Prize in Drop It & Drive Contest

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Drop It & Drive In Darien invites all Darien middle school students to design a two-page sample of a comic book to promote safer driving in our Darien community. The theme of the contest is:

“ON THE ROAD = OFF THE PHONE” — ADULTS AND TEENS ALIKE! 1st Place Prize — $75 cash
2nd Place Prize — $50 cash
3rd Place Prize — $25 cash

Eligibility
All current students in grades 6-8 (public, private or homeschooled) who are residents of Darien, Connecticut. Submission Guidelines
Create your own 2-page sample of a comic book that addresses the issue of distracted driving, particularly of cell phone use, in Darien. Submissions should examine why this is not just a safety issue for teen drivers but applies to everyone, including pedestrians.

Parents & Kids
Drop It & Drive Teen Version

High School ‘Drop It & Drive in Darien’ Stickers Now Available

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An announcement from Drop It & Drive in Darien:

The high school version of the Drop It & Drive logo, designed by DHS junior, Kallie Coughlin, have arrived! Right now, we have them to pick up at The Depot and at Fresh Green Light. They are free to Darien high school students and we will have them at the high school and at various high school clubs, etc. in January. If we spot you with one on your car, you may get a special gift certificate for a treat at a local business.

Public Safety
Drop It & Drive Teen Version

Winner Picked in Design Contest for Teen ‘Drop It & Drive in Darien’ Decal

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Kallie Coughlin, a junior at Darien High School, has won the design contest for a ‘Drop It & Drive in Darien’ decal to be produced and given away to high school students in town. The decal, meant for rear bumpers but which can go on anything, is meant to remind drivers not to use their phones while driving, a practice that distracts drivers and can lead to accidents. Coughlin won a $100 prize. Other winners from the contest, which was open to Darien High students: Seniors Peter Torrente (who wins $50 for second place) and Stephanie Hilton ($25 for third place). The prizes were donated by Fresh Green Light, a driver’s school with a location in Darien. Whitney Ball, a mother and Darien resident, came up with the idea of the campaign and late last summer got help from local businesses and organizations to distribute the first version of the sign on a magnet for rear bumpers.

Arts & Entertainment
Drop It & Drive Design Contest

DHS Students: Enter a Contest to Design a Winning ‘Drop It & Drive’ Logo

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The deadline is Sunday, Nov. 8 for Darien High School students to enter a design contest to create a limited-run version of the “Drop It & Drive in Darien” logo that reminds people not to use their phones while driving. Drop It & Drive and the Darien Police Department are hosting the contest to create the logo, which will be distributed as a decal to DHS students. Here are the prizes:

1st place – $100 cash prize – donated by Fresh Green Light, and have your winning design turned into a car decal. Car decals, donated by Stamford Signs, will be distributed to all DHS students.

Public Safety
Part 1 Drop It Contest

Contest for High School Students: Design a Version of the ‘Drop It & Drive’ Logo

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Darien High School students, can you come up with a different version of the “Drop It & Drive in Darien” logo that’s just started appearing on cars in town? You can enter your version in a new design contest for the logo. First prize is $100, donated by Fresh Green Light (and the glory that goes along with being the winner, but you knew that). If you win, your design will be printed up as a car decal (printed by a donation from Stamford Signs) and be distributed to all DHS students (bet you didn’t know that part). Got the chops for that?

Around Town
Drop It & Drive

Darien Woman Starts Local Effort to Get Drivers Off Phones

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Don’t pick up that cell phone while you’re driving — not to answer the phone or call on it and especially not to text. Editor’s note: An update (at the bottom of the article) has been added at 5:35 p.m. on Sept. 17. We all know we shouldn’t do any of that, and most of us are aware that it can be very dangerous, but Whitney Ball, a Darien mother of two, has an idea that she hopes will actually stop many of us from doing it — and make Darien a safer place to drive. This summer, she came up with the idea of making “Drop It and Drive in Darien” car magnets available around town that can be put on the backs of cars.