A billboard with an important message was unveiled in Colonie Thursday. The 18-by-24-foot image is the result of a design contest at Colonie Central High School.
Nearly 90 students submitted billboard ideas aimed at discouraging drunk driving. Students came by the busload to the spot along Route 155, where the winner was revealed.
Morgan Robertson’s design was chosen. She took a photo of Sandra LaPlante, a guest speaker at the school and victim of a drunk driving crash.
“It really hit me and I thought, 'you know what, I bet this will hit a lot of other people,' ” said Robertson.
Text on the billboard reads, “I got hit by the drunk driver. I got the life sentence.” It’s accompanied by a photo of LaPlante’s prosthetic leg. She lost her leg when an SUV collided with a motorcycle she was riding on.
The contest comes less than a year after student Niko DiNovo was injured in a crash that left him with severe burns. The driver, 19-year-old Michael Carr, has pleaded not guilty to several charges, including driving while impaired by drugs.
The billboard will be seen by an estimated 25,000 drivers daily.