Candy Lightner

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"Death changes us, the living. In the presence of death, we become more aware of life...It can aspire us to decide what really matters in life--and then to seek it"(Candy Lightner). This quote, by Candy Lightner, describes what drove her in life and what she believed in. Candy is a strong, hard-working woman who founded the Mothers Against Drunk Driving(MADD) organization because of her daughter, Cari's death in May of 1980. Candy Lightner was born on May 30th, 1946 and was raised in California. Her life dramatically changed after the death of Cari, which was caused by a drunk driver. Thus, drove Candy to create MADD. "Not long after the incident, her one-woman crusade had grown sufficiently and had gained much support. By October of 1980, there were already four MADD chapters in California"("Candy Lightner." Contemporary). Furthermore, "Only four years later, MADD had persuaded the U.S. Congress to create a new law, which raised the legal drinking age to 21, a change said to save approximately 800 lives annually"("Candy Lightner." Encyclopedia).  A hero must be relentless, passionate, and courageous. To be relentless, one must strive to achieve their goal, no matter what it takes. To be passionate, one must fully believe in what they are trying to accomplish. And to be courageous, one must learn to take risks. In Candy Lightner's case, she has demonstrated all of these traits. Although Candy Lightner faced so much trouble in her life, her relentless efforts, extreme passion, and the courage she had to transform the grief of a tragic death into a good cause, shows that Lightner proves to be a hero and inspiration.

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It was extraordinary how relentless Candy Lightner was in pursuing the success of MADD. Every single thing she did was filled with blood, sweat, and tears as she struggled to accomplish her hopes. The tragic death of her daughter was caused by a drunk driver. Candy committed her life to the Mother's Against Drunk Driving organization in order to raise awareness of the issue of drunk driving: "Lightner put her obsessive determination to work lobbying Governor Jerry Brown of California to create a state commission for studying drunk driving. After several months of daily visits to the governor's office, Brown formed the commission and made Lightner its first member"("Candy Lightner." Encyclopedia). Candy's determination to succeed in persuading the governor of California every day for many months showed how badly she wanted MADD to materialize. She refused to surrender even when the governor refused to discuss her organization. Lightner returned to the governor's office day after day, until he formed the commission. Her dedication to MADD was obviously existent, but the concern for the public was evident as she determined to change the opinions of the public concerning drunk driving: "Determined to make Cari's death meaningful, Lightner resolved to end the public thinking which sees 'death caused by drunk drivers [as] the only socially acceptable form of homicide.' Her anger transformed her from an apolitical real estate agent not even registered to vote, into a national figure who considers the victims of drunk drivers to be her 'constituency'"("Candy Lightner." Contemporary). Lightner took her grief and anger and transformed those emotions into a cause for the greater good. She worked thoroughly to alter the thinking of the public regarding the matter of drunk driving. Although she wasn't a registered voter, that didn't phase her pursuit: to raise awareness of drunk driving and support its victims. Her unceasing effort to make sense of a senseless act and turn her pain into a purpose, truly exposed Candy Lightner's tough, yet moving nature.

Lightner had an abundant amount of passion from the beginning. She believed in her organization wholeheartedly. Lightner is also a woman of action as shown in this quote: "Four days after Cari's death, Lightner started up a grassroots organization to advocate for stiffer penalties for drunk driving. She quit her job and used her savings to fund Mothers Against Drunk Drivers(later known as Mothers Against Drunk Driving)" ("Candy Lightner." Bio.com). Not even after a week had passed since the death of her daughter, and she became laser focused on her goal. Candy's passion was exemplified from the start, by quitting her job to pour undivided attention into her organization, rather than splitting her time with her job. The tragic accident sparked the flame, and with such passion, she proved that she can accomplish anything: "The anger that inspired her to found MADD transformed her from an apolitical real estate agent-she wasn't even registered to vote-into a one-woman dynamo, head of a non-profit organization of over 50,000 members with a budget of over $10 million" ("Candy Lightner." Newsmakers). She fought for her organization and believed in it fiercely. She showed that to achieve success, one must overflow with passion to strive for their goal. Lightner demonstrated that with passion, one can do anything. Lightner's undying passion for Mothers Against Drunk Driving was undeniable, as she exhibited all the things that define the word, "passion".

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The entire process of  starting MADD and being able to go out in front of people to share a personal story requires courage. Candy Lightner had the bravery and confidence to do these things and execute them well. Not only did Lightner have to cope with the loss of her own daughter, but she also tackled difficult choices: "Lightner quit real estate job and used her savings plus insurance money from Cari's death to finance almost 60 percent of the organization's expenses its first year" ("Candy Lightner." Newsmakers). This quote showcases Lightner's bravery by quitting her job and raising money for her organization. Not many people have the courage to risk losing your income, life savings, and career. This also shows that Lightner is capable of making risky decisions, which is a necessary quality of being brave. It's hard to imagine a woman traveling alone to different states to present her ideas to people. But Candy Lightner did just that, and to her surprise, large crowds marched with her: "'I had in mind twenty women marching on the Capitol of California' she said, 'but within two months we were about one hundred people marching on the White House in Washington'" ("Candy Lightner." Contemporary). Most people would not go the extent of traveling to other states to promote their cause. However, Candy Lightner isn't like most people in that sense. She's brave. She's a woman who springs into action. As proven, Lightner stretched to reach anything for MADD, no matter how difficult, for bravery was her trademark.

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At the start of it all, Candy Lightner had never been involved with any kind of social reform or politics. She hadn't even been registered to vote. And yet, she has climbed her way to the top of success with her organization by tremendously hard work and dedication. The organization she founded became one of the largest activist organizations and have impacted many people. As a result of Lightner and MADD, the world is much more aware of drunk-driving and how severe the topic really is. "The outcome of her hard work in MADD, specifically the change of law of drinking age, lead to a reduction of deaths of 800 lives per year"("Candy Lightner." Encyclopedia), which satisfied her vision of creating MADD. Lightner made an impact on the world for the better and because of this, she truly is an inspiration.