Abbie DeLoach was one of five Georgia Southern University nursing students to lose their lives on April 22, 2015 due to a distracted driver.  

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and the Abbie DeLoach Foundation is encouraging businesses, community partners, individuals and students to join its #HandsFreeForAbbie campaign by visiting the HandsFreeForAbbie.com website and taking the pledge.

DeLoach, along with Caitlyn Baggett of Millen, Emily Clark of Powder Springs, Morgan Bass of Leesburg and Catherine McKay Pittman of Alpharetta all lost their lives when a tractor trailer rig plowed into them as they sat in their vehicles in a line of traffic on Interstate-16 East in Bryan County that was halted due to clean-up efforts from a previous wreck.

As part of its work in the community, the Abbie DeLoach Foundation is helping raise awareness about distracted driving and encouraging drivers to commit to ending it. 

“It takes a continuous and conscious effort to do the right thing when behind the wheel,” said Jimmy DeLoach Jr., Abbie’s father and president of the Abbie DeLoach Foundation. “The pace of travel has picked up as the pandemic has waned, which means more people are on the roads — and more will be tempted to be distracted as they drive. Our goal is for every driver to make a commitment to safe driving to help save lives so that no parent, relative, friend or colleague will get a call about a tragic accident that stops their world.” 

The #HandsFreeForAbbie Pledge[1]:

When I drive a vehicle:

·         I will not hold my phone in my hand or support it with any part of my body.

·         I will not write, read or send text messages, emails, social media content and other internet data. 

·         I will not watch videos. 

·         I will not record or broadcast videos. 

·         I will not touch my phone to activate or program any music-streaming app. 

·         I will be a good passenger and speak out if the driver in my car is distracted. 

·         I will encourage my friends and family to drive phone-free.

·         I will help protect lives by making the commitment to drive phone-free today.