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If you’re from Long Island, you probably remember the story.
A young man was killed in a fraternity hazing. He was stuffed into the trunk of a car with two other boys and driven around until they had consumed a pint of bourbon, a quart of wine and a six pack of beer. He died of acute alcohol poisoning.
Could he have refused? Yes. Could he have told them that he wasn’t interested in joining their fraternity? Absolutely. But he didn’t. He trusted that he would be ok, that this would just be one night and that after it was over he would be a member of this club. But it wasn’t ok. He died. He was a beautiful young man, a sweet, funny boy. He was my cousin. It was 1978 and I was 12 years old.
After his death, his mother started a foundation; CHUCK: Committee Halting Useless College Killings. My mother came up with the anagram… she and my brother and I would get in the car every Friday and drive out to Sayville, where we would stuff and stamp envelopes. I don’t know where these letters were going. I don’t really know much of what was going on. All I knew was that my cousin Suzanne, my best friend had lost her big brother whom she adored and I didn’t know what to say. We were all numb.
This little grass roots initiative grew. It grew a lot. Today 43 states have laws that prohibit fraternity hazings that endanger human life.
Chucks anniversary was last week. Today Ed Lowe had a column in Newsday, marking the 25th anniversary.
As my cousin Suzanne said to me the other day… I can’t believe it’s been 25 years since I’ve seen him.
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Another Christine has an amazing story and link about her aunt on her site. She was a pioneer in helping
I applaud your family for the work they did to help promote these laws. Watching teens/college kids abuse alcohol hurts us all when they lose their futures.
That was a beautiful article Christine. Your family is full of so many strong women.