11 names added to MADD Ontario monument for impaired driving victims
MADD Ontario added 11 names to its memorial monument to honor victims of impaired driving. The event served as a somber reminder of the preventable nature of these tragedies and a call for increased public awareness and police resources.
Why it matters
It underscores the ongoing public safety crisis regarding impaired driving and the role of advocacy groups in policy and remembrance.
Jade Galve, the mother of three children killed in an impaired driving crash on Highway 401 in May 2025, attended the event. Ramone, 15, Jace, 13 and six-year-old Mya Laviña were among the new names engraved on the memorial.
"Don't ever drink and drive," she told CBC Toronto. "One decision can change someone's life forever."
The three children, as well as Galve, another sibling and a family friend, were in a van stopped at a red light just after midnight in Etobicoke when a man exiting Highway 401 lost control of his vehicle, crossed a raised median and crashed into them.
The annual memorial, held by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), invites victims' friends and family who have lost loved ones to gather at the monument in Chinguacousy Park.
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