GUNNERY SGT. PEDRO VILLARREAL
1st Battalion, 12th Marines, 3rd Marine Division

I grew up poor, so most of the vehicles my family owned were small and only seated up to four passengers. Some might not see that as a problem, but for our family of seven, it was always an issue. It wasn’t uncommon for all of us to cram into the car for a trip to the store. And since we were packed in so tightly, we never wore our seat belts. Therefore, I always thought it was normal to not wear one.

This way of thinking held true until October 1993. I was a junior in high school and in the process of joining the Marine Corps. My family and I had just returned from a vacation to Mexico, and the following day was the last of the school year. The next morning, my mother said I could stay home since we were all still so tired from our drive back from Mexico. However, I told her I felt fine and went on to school.

A Marine Corps recruiter picked me up from school that afternoon so I could take care of some traffic tickets. Once we were finished at the county clerk’s office, we started making our way back to my house. A few miles from our exit, traffic began to back up on the interstate and state troopers were diverting vehicles onto a feeder road. I didn’t think much of it, and the recruiter and I started talking about what kind of accident could be causing the tie-up. As we neared the accident scene, I saw my sister’s damaged truck on the side of the road. I told the recruiter to stop, jumped out of his car and ran to the truck.

The ambulances had already left the scene by this time, so I didn’t know who had been in the truck. I eventually found my sister crying on the side of the road and asked her what had happened. All I could understand her saying was “Mom!” I was confused and not sure what was happening. A state trooper asked me to go get my father, so I left to find him. I returned to the scene only to discover my dad was already there. I ran to him and asked where my mom was, but he didn’t answer. As I glanced back toward my sister’s truck, I could see there was a sheet covering a body on the interstate. I wanted to know who was under that sheet. My dad then confirmed my worst fear, telling me that my mom was no longer with us.

My sister drove a 1980’s model Chevrolet Silverado that only seated three passengers. I later found out that my 4-year-old brother, 8-year-old sister, 2-year-old nephew and my mother had all been riding with my sister. None of the younger kids was in a car seat and no one was wearing a seat belt. When my sister lost control of the truck, my mom was ejected and landed on the interstate.

To lose a loved one always hurts. But to lose the person who gave birth to you and did everything in their power to ensure you were always taken care of hurts the most. Since that day, I have always worn my seat belt and make sure anyone riding with me does the same. I never want my children to know the feeling of losing a parent at such a young age. Seat belts save lives … but they only work if you wear them.

FYI

Seat belts are the single most effective traffic safety device for preventing death and injury. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• Seat belts saved an estimated 13,941 lives in 2015 and could have saved an additional 2,814 people had they buckled up.

• Of the passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2015, 48 percent were unrestrained.