"You're only young once, but you may be immature forever," could be the rallying cry for the numerous nonprofit groups intent on raising awareness for crucial, and costly, community problems surrounding individual habits that range from smoking and poor nutrition to abuses like drugs and alcohol. Many Canadians feel that these and other concerns, could be controlled or eradicated if individual maturity would kick-in on a large scale.

Taking responsibility for yourself and your actions can, among other things, strengthen your financial position, which could, in turn, improve your real estate portfolio. Conceivably, this redirecting of wealth could result in more Canadians being able to afford better housing and more communities being able to build more housing -- significant social impact that may begin with apparently small individual decisions as the following example demonstrates.

Once someone has had an alcoholic drink, or a few drinks, their judgement may be too impaired to make mature decisions about whether or not to drive. This abdication of personal responsibility leaves friends, companions, bartenders, party hosts and on-lookers with the challenge of keeping an impaired driver off the road. While each of us must be ready to take the initiative if this danger arises, Operation Red Nose (ORN) offers another alternative.

Operation Red Nose, an international nonprofit movement against impaired driving that began in Quebec in 1984, emphasizes the importance of taking personal responsibility and making plans for getting home BEFORE you leave the house. There are 93 Chapters in Quebec and 6 in Ontario, and hundreds around the world.

A three-person ORN team picks up each impaired client: a driver and navigator who take the client home in his/her own car, and a driver for the escort car, which follows along to the client's home. The 3 team members then proceed to their next assignment. The escort car maintains radio contact with the dispatcher in case problems arise. ORN rides are offered on a first-come-first-served basis and cannot be reserved.

Volunteers come from all walks of life and from all over. Some people call ahead to volunteer in Chatham when they make holiday plans to visit family or friends. Some volunteers have been involved in impaired charges or have family members who have, but others turn out simply because they care. Teenagers work as dispatchers to earn their community service credits or to make a difference.

When asked what goals Chelle Cartier has for the Chatham-Kent Chapter of Operation Red Nose, she responded: "I hope one day, Operation Red Nose is not needed. Because this is an awareness campaign, not a service, and that would mean we have more people being responsible -- ready to make arrangements and not drive drunk. [More people] putting these plans in place in advance so Operation Red Nose is not needed. We can pussy foot around things or tell it like it is: nothing will change unless we change."

The Chatham-Kent chapter began in 1997. Each year the program has grown as word spreads.In 2005, 346 Chatham volunteers drove 893 fellow residents home over 9 nights in December and made 210 trips on New Year's Eve alone. This year, ORN volunteers are on call for 10 December nights -- Fridays, Saturdays and New Year's Eve.

"We're finding that more and more people are planning ahead," said Cartier, who explains that impaired driving charges and crashes have dropped in the 6 ORN Ontario communities. "The uniqueness of [Operation Red Nose] is getting their vehicle home. If they plan better through the Christmas holidays, we hope they will plan ahead better the rest of the year."

Cartier explains that the benefit to their community, site of the only southwestern Ontario chapter, is two fold:

• "We are saving lives, not just the people driving home, but those on the road, too."

• Although the ride home is free, clients usually make donations to show their appreciation. All of this money is directed to local youth programming.

Fundraising in the community provides the financing necessary to feed volunteers, promote the ORN service and cover administration costs. Local small businesses make significant contributions and corporate funding plays a crucial role.

According to Cartier: "The Insurance Bureau of Canada is a provincial sponsor and helps cover the cost of advertising, posters and brochures. This year, they did a lot of advertising for volunteers for us through newspapers and radio. It was a tremendous help having provincial sponsors help us expand this year."

The national ORN office works through established provincial organizations, like the Ontario Safety League and the Manitoba Safety Council, which share a commitment to community and individual well-being, and can support the intensive ORN volunteer effort. At the community level, a host group like Chatham's Drug Education Alliance, offers strong local support. Volunteers provide the heart and spirit of ORN, and their drive, in more ways than one, gets the job done.

Cartier is very clear about the purpose of ORN: "The thing is I hear so many times is 'Why not have this all year round and in the summer?' This is an awareness campaign, not a cab service. At some point, you [drivers] have to be responsible for the decisions you make. This is run by volunteers and how many volunteers will give up every Friday for you? People have to be responsible for their actions ... . We can't save everyone. We can't drive everyone home. It is alarming to think that there are some individuals out there who think that it is everybody else's fault that they are drunk."

Please plan ahead to have a Happy New Year: select a designated driver, stay overnight, call a cab or phone Operation Red Nose to keep you off the road -- just don't make them your first thought.

Published: December 26, 2006

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Futurist and Strategist PJ Wade is "The Catalyst" - intent on "Challenging The Best to Become Even Better." PJ earned this title by translating the dynamic impact of Boomers and their multi-generation families into relevant insights that start people thinking and taking action—in business and in life. Author of 8 books and more than 1800 published articles, PJ encourages individuals to become their own futurist. PJ writes and speaks about the insight, knowledge and solid decision-making skills that professionals and their clients need to live and work in this vortex of change. For instance, since PJ knows that home is headquarters for the new decades-long "unretirement," she wrote the popular book "Reverse Mortgages: Best Friend, Worst Enemy...Your Choice!", which is filled with suggestions and cautions on protecting, building and managing home equity. Her new business book, "What's Your Point?: Cut The Crap, Hit The Mark & Stick!" will be published in 2012. As The Catalyst, PJ provides strategic communication, client appreciation and advanced education services to the financial, tourism, lifestyle and service sectors - and the clients they serve. A frequently-quoted financial and business commentator, PJ is a thought-provoking strategic speaker who offers practical, real-life suggestions on leaving "the box" behind and embracing Forward Thinking - a talent she regularly demonstrates in this column. For more on keynotes, blogs, books and information on a range of 21st-Century topics, visit TheCatalyst.com.