Welcome to another issue of The SADDvocate! This month brings us to the end of the school year across the nation, and a close to another year of thousands of SADD chapters making a difference. We hope it was a fun and productive year for your chapter! Our goal is to ensure that every SADD chapter has the latest news, so we're counting on you to help spread the word about The SADDvocate. Please encourage all of your SADD chapter members to sign up on sadd.org, or send a list (spreadsheets preferred, with columns for first name, last name, and email address) to Chris Egan, SADD's Director of Field Services, at cegan@sadd.org. Sometimes school computer filters prevent students and advisors from seeing The SADDvocate properly, in full color with graphics. You can view every issue in our online archive. This issue will be posted to the archive later today. A good source of regular SADD news is our Facebook page. Please "like" our page today, and encourage your friends to do so as well - we're hoping to reach 10,000 likes by June 30th! Links to all our social networking pages are on the bar at left. |
 | We're Taking a Break!
|  Just as schools take a summer break, so do we. The next issue of The SADDvocate will be sent in early September - there won't be July or August issues. No, we won't be practicing meditation in a desert paradise - we're busy preparing for our national conference later this month and continuing to work on a number of upcoming projects, so the SADD National office will be open throughout the summer. If your chapter continues its work during the summer - perhaps as part of a coalition or other group - you might check out our Think About It ... Summer Waves: The Power of Communication campaign, which you can download for free here. We hope you enjoy your summer break! |
| Contests, Grants, and Awards | Although the school year is coming to an end, there are still a number of open contests that you or your chapter might consider.
 NOYS is holding their annual Teen Distracted Driving Prevention Summit in Washington, DC, on October 21, and they're looking for teams of two students and one advisor to take part! If you're selected, you'll receive free travel and lodging for the Summit, and receive training that will prepare you to plan your own local Summit! This is a great opportunity to make a difference on such an important topic. To learn more and apply, click here. Hurry - applications are due June 30.
 If you're a student between the ages of 16 and 21, you could win big prizes by helping call attention to teen driver safety in the Bridgestone Teens Drive Smart Video Contest. Create a 25- or 55-second video addressing teen driver safety - the precise focus is up to you - and submit it by June 19. 10 finalists will be selected and win a set of Bridgestone or Firestone tires. Then the public votes for their favorite - and the winner takes home a staggering $20,000 scholarship! To learn more, visit teensdrivesmart.com.
 Our friends at MADD are looking for students to serve on their MADD National Teen Influencer Group. Students must be 13-18 and a high school student in 2014-15 to apply. If chosen, you'll work with MADD National staff on underage drinking and impaired driving issues. The group will meet monthly via conference call, and may have an in-person meeting as well. Applications are due July 18. Click here to learn more and apply.
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| Programs & Resources |  We're pleased to announce the winners of our Best of SADD National Awards program for 2014! We received many compelling nominations, and the judges had a hard time choosing from among them. Here are the richly-deserved prize winners (look for descriptions of these winning nominations on sadd.org soon!):
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Activity of the Year
| Advisor of the Year
| Chapter of the Year
| 1st Place
Protecting You, Protecting Me
Denham Springs
High School JADD
Denham Springs, LA
| 1st Place
Mary Tuskan
Clinton High School SADD
Clinton, TN
| 1st Place
Stuarts Draft High School SADD
Stuarts Draft, VA
| 2nd Place
The Kiosk
Wallenpaupack
High School SADD
Hawley, PA
| 2nd Place
Lisa Balka
Great Oak High School SADD
Temecula, CA
| 2nd Place
Wyoming County SADD
Rock View, WV
| 3rd Place
i.AM
Dothan High School SADD
Dothan, AL
| 3rd Place
Maureen Witkowski
Royal Palm Beach High School SADD
Royal Palm Beach, FL
| 3rd Place
Madison County SADD
Anderson, IN
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Additionally, the judges awarded a special "Judges Award" to Louisburg Middle School SADD in Louisburg, Kansas - the first time any chapter has been so honored.
Congratulations to all these worthy winners!
 At the SADD National Conference in Washington, DC, in just a few short days, conference attendees will visit their Senators to help press SADD's legislative priorities. Whether you're attending conference or not, you can learn some valuable advocacy tips from Jon Terry at Capitol Youth Strategies, SADD's advocacy partner in Washington.
Jon will offer two webinars, on Tuesday, June 10 and Tuesday, June 17, both at 2pm Eastern time. To join the webinars (no registration necessary), go to www.gatherplace.net and click the "Join a Session" button on the left bar. Enter access code 7083952. Then, using your phone, call 605-475-4350 and enter access code 205810#. If you're not able to join the web portion of the webinar, you can simply listen in on the phone to the audio portion.
 Child passenger safety may not be an issue many SADD chapters deal with regularly, but your local law enforcement officers and highway safety officials work hard to educate parents about proper child car seats. Our friends at State Farm asked us to share this story about how a free child safety seat inspection saved the life of a five-year-old just days later. Check out Saving Leilani here. This fall, reach out to law enforcement to find out how your chapter can get involved in Child Passenger Safety Week, which will be held September 14-20.
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| SADD National Conference |  We're gearing up for the 2014 SADD National Conference, Life is a Jungle: Join the Expedition, which will be held June 22-25 at the Sheraton Premiere at Tysons Corner just outside Washington, DC. We hope you're as excited as we are!
If you're not able to join us at conference, you don't have to miss out - look for updates posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram - we'll be using the hashtag #SADDtakesDC.
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| SADD Store - Spend Down Your Budget! | Around this time of year, we sometimes get panicked phone calls from chapters. They've received a grant and the funds will expire if they're not spent before the end of the school or fiscal year. If your chapter is in that situation - or you simply have unspent funds you raised this year - why not plan ahead for the fall by shopping at the SADD Store? If your grant requires you to purchase only items made in the USA, we've got you covered - you can easily search through those on the site, and there is a wide selection.
 There are plenty of great items available for sale, like this eye-catching SADD banner - on durable vinyl with reinforced seams. You'll be able to use it for years to come!
To order, visit saddstore.org, call 1-888-608-6988, or email sadd@apisource.com. Make sure you like the SADD Store Facebook page for all the latest deals and specials!
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