Calgary mother Sandy Jaeger, whose son Cameron was killed by an impaired driver in Montana in April 2024, says the holiday season’s reminders about sober driving are a painful but necessary call to action. “Cam was an amazing young man who was taking the world on every minute of every day,” Jaeger said. “He cared about his friends, he cared about his fire crews when he was a wildland firefighter, he cared about his family.” Jaeger and her husband joined first responders and victims’ advocates at the launch of MADD Calgary and Area’s Project Red Ribbon campaign Monday, which urges people to plan ahead for a sober ride home during the holiday season. The campaign, now in its 38th year, runs from Nov. 1 to Jan. 5, 2026, and asks Canadians to display a red ribbon or car decal as a visible pledge to drive sober. Jaeger said the woman convicted in her son’s death had been driving with three times the legal limit of alcohol. “She is serving time but will likely be eligible for parole within the year, so her life continues. Our life sentence is to mourn him every day,” she said. “We will fight to make the roads safer for all the families across Canada.” Chief Const. Katie McLellan of the Calgary Police Service said impaired driving peaks during the festive period. “A lot of people are out celebrating at this time of year. There’s a lot of Christmas parties that go on, a lot of office parties,” she said. “Lots of opportunities for people to be out and about.” She said the problem remains serious and entirely preventable. “There’s going to be injuries, there’s going to be fatalities,” McLellan said. “It’s unacceptable — people have to take responsibility." Doug Odney, interim associate executive director of Alberta Health Services EMS, said the toll of impaired driving extends deeply into the emergency services community. “When our paramedics come across emergency scenes like that, it can be very traumatic,” Odney said. “PTSD is huge. The mental-health impact is huge, and when it’s predictable, it’s just so hard to accept.” MADD Canada says every hour in this country, an average of nine criminal charges or licence suspensions are laid for alcohol- or drug-impaired driving. Jaeger said her family will continue to speak out to prevent more families from living their nightmare. “We ask that every person who goes out makes a plan ahead of time so that your choice is a safe ride home and not the last choice,” she said. “We don’t want any other family to go through what we, and many like us, have gone through.” Red ribbons and car decals are available from MADD Calgary and Area at 403-278-8081 or by emailing maddcalgaryarea@gmail.com. More information about the Project Red Ribbon campaign and its national sponsors is available on the MADD Canada website.
