9.13.10 Cynthia Ranyak
name: Cynthia Ranyak
email [email protected]
story : On April 2nd of 2005, at 10:15 a.m., a tragedy occurred at mile marker # 27 on
Highway 528 (Beachline ) in Orange County Florida. The life of our young,
beautiful, talented girl was violently taken. Her name was Emily Jasmine; she
was my18-year old daughter. This is not a story of grief, of how to overcome
tragedy, of how to rebuild your life from the ashes left behind by a loved one’s
death. This is a narrative, if you will, of the dangers of street racing, the
careless culture of racing fanatics, and the lack of concern for human life.
This is the compelling recounting of the tragedy of a gifted, promising young
lady. A young lady whose life was cut short by a world that bowed down to the
shrine of the Speed Fanatic Culture, where private businesses, officers of the
law, and young drivers were fascinated by speed and blind to consequence.The
young man who tried to pass another vehicle on the highway, in his brand new
Honda Civic at excessive speeds, also lost his life that Saturday morning in
April. Sadly and tragically, two families are left behind who must pick up the
pieces and somehow make sence of their new reality in a culture that will not
address the unintended consequences of Speed. History repeats itself again and
again. When will we stand up for our young adults? Neon18.com is an advocacy
group for safe teen driving. Since 2007 we have given 6 scholarships to
deserving students heading for college in memory of our beautiful and talented
daughter, Emily Jasmine. We continue to raise awareness of the dangers of speed
and reckless driving decisions for young drivers under 21 by partnering with
like-minded advocacy groups. There is always a choice to be made.If you had a
perfect excuse, you would not need forgiveness; if the whole of your actions
needs forgiveness, then there was no excuse for it. But the trouble is that what
we call “asking God’s forgiveness” very often really consists in asking God to
accept our excuses. – CS Lewis
