The last thing Nolan Barnes remembers from a car crash on May 8, 2010 is not being able to move his legs.
“My next memory is waking up and I’m lying outside, facedown, in a ditch,” Barnes said.
The 27-year-old was paralyzed from the chest down after his friend, who drove drunk, fell asleep at the wheel.
Barnes and eight of his friends from Yorkton had hopped into an SUV and made their way to a rave in Saskatoon.
“We partied until the wee hours of the morning,” he said.
After a night of drinking, the group made their way back to Yorkton when his friend, the driver, veered into a ditch and rolled over. One person died as a result of the crash and eight other passengers were injured.
Barnes and SGI have teamed up to spread a message on the dangers of drunk driving.
Barnes publically shares his story and speaks at schools, corporate events and YouTube.
SGI spokesman Tyler McMurchy said he was impressed with Barnes’ determination to make a difference, making him the perfect candidate to be featured in a series of SGI-produced online videos meant to raise awareness on drunk driving.
The videos come as part of SGI’s May Traffic Safety Spotlight on impaired driving.
“I think when you listen to what somebody like Nolan says and when he talks with brutal honesty about how his life changed as a result of that day, it’s difficult to not be affected by it,” McMurchy said.
When it comes to impaired driving, SGI says much of the focus is on fatalities but injuries are more common – many of them life-changing.
While Barnes’ crash had its consequences, he says he’s thankful only the people that made the decision to get in the vehicle that night were affected.
“Thank God it was just us,” he said.
You can hear more of Barnes’ story through his Instagram.
