About
The idea for creating heathersstory.org came to me after I produced two videos about Heather Lerch for the Washington State Department of Licensing. Heather’s parents made quite an impression on me. Just five weeks after losing their daughter, Dan and Wendy Lerch agreed to do an on-camera interview about the dangers of texting and driving. Their aim was—and remains—to spare others from the profound loss that can result from distracted driving.
This website’s goal is to help amplify the Lerch’s message. The two videos that I shot, wrote and edited for the DOL’s YouTube channel are embedded within this website. To be clear, this site is not affiliated with the DOL. It is my independent and non-profit project.
In addition to the videos, this site also features photographs of Heather, her car and links to media coverage about Heather’s story. You’ll also find links to other resources concerning distracted driving. As time allows and events warrant, I’ll also write some blog posts.
Your comments and suggestions are welcome. Thank you for taking a moment to consider the message here. And please…don’t text and drive.
Sincerely,
Mark Horner
Beth Ettinger
You would think after hearing yet another a tragic story like Heather’s, it would be enough to make anyone stop texting while driving. No parent should have to go through what the Lerch’s have. As the mother of two teenagers, I wanted to do my part to help raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving, so I created Get Good Carma, with a portion of each sale being donated to txtresponsibly.org. We can all help put an end to texting & driving.
Mark Horner
Thank you very much, Ms. Tanner. I truly hope the message helps your son resolve to never reach for his phone while driving, and that he won’t tolerate it from a friend (or adult) while he’s a passenger, either.
I’m sure Heather’s parents appreciate the comment you’ve kindly shared here.
-Mark Horner
heathersstory.org admin.
twitter: @heathersstory
Stormy Tanner
I am so very sorry for your loss.
Thank you for your honesty.
I have shown your video to my teenage son who is getting his license this month.