Until last May, many WSU students thought they would never have to experience the consequences of drunken driving. But when Tanya Guseva died, the repercussions of drunken driving became a reality.

Guseva remained on everyone’s mind Tuesday as more than 300 students watched a simulation of a drunken driving accident. Students who thought they would never have to watch police officers and firefighters attempt to pry their friends from a heap of twisted steel were reminded of how a single wrong choice could impact the lives of others.

The event and Sarah Zidaritz’s moving personal account of her friend’s needless death in Tuesday’s Evergreen have made this issue intensely personal for Cougs. Organized by Alpha Omicron Pi, the Panhellenic Council, the Interfraternity Council, local police and fire departments and GIVE, ASWSU’s philanthropic outreach group, the simulation was a quality example of what a community can do when it comes together.

All of the campus organizations involved in the Anti-Drunk Driving Awareness Week events should be commended for putting so much effort into a cause that could save lives. The Greek community and ASWSU create events throughout the school year that often fail to inspire or make little impact. However, given the heavy toll drunken driving has taken on the WSU community this summer, the simulation proved to be one of the most powerful.

In 2006, 269 people died in accidents caused by drunken driving in Washington and more than 15,000 died nationally, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

These statistics are startling, but they do not instill the same sense of loss that WSU students felt this summer. If this week’s events do not act as a deterrent to drunken driving, then maybe nothing will.

When a fellow Coug loses their life, our small community feels the impact. The bonds built from attending classes, living and partying together for years are deep and profound.

This week’s events reminded us that Tanya Guseva was not just a statistic. She was a friend. She was a daughter. She was a Coug.