Lots of reasons to buckle up ~ May 17, 2006
David Heiller I became a firm believer in seat belt use in 1980. My sister-in-law was on her way home to Brooklyn Center for Easter break that year. She was sitting in the front seat between two other people. The weather was terrible that day thanks to a spring snowstorm. As they traveled along Highway 316 south of Hastings, an oncoming vehicle lost control and hit them head on. My sister-in-law went through the wind shield. She did not die, but she suffered a closed head injury. She was in a coma for about a month, then spent years of physical therapy and cognitive rehabilitation. She has worked hard to make a good life for herself, but her life was changed forever that day. She didn’t have a seat belt on. Very likely she would have been spared serious injury had she been wearing one. There are a lot of stories out there like that. When we read them, we don’t really absorb them and internalize them. But since that, I have been a consistent seat belt wearer, 1954 Che...