'A good day's work': Awards handed out to officers getting impaired drivers off the road

Police officers from across central and northern Saskatchewan were awarded for their work getting impaired drivers off the roads on Monday, an initiative of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada (MADD).

The initiative is done in conjunction with Linda and Lou Van de Vorst, who lost four family members at the hands of a drunk driver.

“It's nice to be recognized, but at the end of the day, if I can prevent anybody or any other families from going through a tragedy that Linda and Lou faced, that's good with me. That's a good day's work,” said Amy Huebner, peace officer on the University of Saskatchewan campus.

Huebner is receiving an award for the second year in a row. She is responsible for getting 140 drivers off the road who were either drunk or high.

Constable Dustin Cowan also received the award for his work, getting 135 impaired drivers off the road.

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While many young people today know to not get behind the wheel after having alcohol, he maintains more needs to be done for drug impairment.

“The next generation growing up now knows not to drink and drive. They don't know not to drive high,” Cowan says.

The awards are named after the Van de Vorst family. Mom Chanda, dad Jordan and two small children lost their lives at the hands of a drunk driver in 2016 just outside of Saskatoon.

Parents Linda and Lou Van de Vorst have dedicated their lives to reducing tragedies like they have endured and are optimistic a change is happening.

“Officers don't want to make that phone call. They don't want to knock on that door. They don't want to go to the site where they see people that have been involved in these crashes that are lying all over the place, that’s horrific,” Linda Van de Vorst said.

Lou Van de Vorst hopes that by sharing their heartbreaking story of the moment they were told about the crash, others will not drive impaired.

“That knock on the door, it starts a whole process. It changes your life completely and it's so needless,” he said.

Saskatoon Police Service Chief Cam McBride said the awards go along way to bring the numbers down to save lives, and having the connection with the Van de Vorst’s helps the work.

“Coming through the other side and putting that tragedy into motivation, to motivate us to do the work that we do,” McBride says.

“These awards are an acknowledgment of the families who have been victimized through impaired driving and it's just a demonstration of how we work together to overcome very difficult problems in the province.”

A total of 3,973 charges or suspensions were handed out, with drivers were taken off the road this past year.