By MADDY VITALE
Two decades have passed since Navy Ensign John R. Elliott was killed at age 22 by a drunk driver.
For his parents, Bill and Muriel Elliott, of Egg Harbor Township, they have made it their life’s work to not only keep their son’s memory alive, but help save others so that other parents do not receive the devastating phone call they did on the morning of July 22, 2000, informing them of John's death.
They started the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers shortly after their son’s death. The non-profit organization promotes the importance of designated drivers.
“There is no stronger power than love and that can be translated into something positive,” Bill Elliott said. “You stare into space and question why. We are there now for other families to lend a helping hand.”
On Sunday, Oct. 17, the John R. Elliott Hero Walk and 1-Mile Fun Run will take place on the Ocean City Boardwalk. The run will be at 10 a.m. HERO ceremonies are at 10:30 a.m.
And the HERO Walk on the boards begins at 11 a.m. A memory banner will display the pictures of more than 20 area residents who have lost their lives to drunk and impaired driving tragedies.
In tribute to Ensign John R. Elliott, the Elliott family, in foreground, and other participants mimic the U.S. Naval Academy's famous "hats off" graduation tradition in 2018. (Photo courtesy of HERO Campaign)
The Ocean City event is one of the HERO Campaign’s biggest fundraisers. However, rainy weather was not on their side in 2019 and held down the turnout. Then the COVID-19 pandemic forced the event's cancellation in 2020.
“We have a good turnout expected. One of our biggest sources of walkers is families and students," Bill Elliott noted of this year's event.
Several area middle schools and high schools, along with Stockton University will be represented at the walk.
“The focus of our message is on our young people. We want it ingrained in them that you don’t drive while you are impaired," Elliott emphasized. "This is about helping your friends, having a buddy system."
There is a staying power to the HERO Campaign.
The Elliotts have an idea why.
“People relate this to their own lives and their own families," Bill Elliott said. "Whenever we speak and ask how many people know someone involved in an alcohol-related accident, so many people raise their hands."
In addition to a ceremony, there will be what Elliott describes as a “healing and inspiring” Memory Banner of more than 20 people who lost their lives in South Jersey as a result of a drunk driver.
Police cars and SUVs lining Sea Isle City's Promenade in 2020 are decorated in honor of the HERO Campaign.
The event will also feature a display of HERO patrol cars from police departments throughout South Jersey, wrapped with the HERO Campaign’s blue and yellow logo and message, “Be a HERO. Be a Designated Driver.”
The cars serve as rolling billboards for the campaign. The goal is to raise $80,000 for educational and awareness programs in partnership with schools and colleges, law enforcement, bar and tavern owners, and professional sports teams.
Elliott said there are some new ideas that are in the works for the campaign. The Elliotts are far from slowing down on their mission to help others.
They are expanding their digital footprint and have close to 200,000 people who have taken the HERO Campaign pledge to be a designated driver or be a part of the cause.
“We have worked with hundreds of bars and asked them to give free sodas to designated drivers,” Elliott said. “They all say yes.”
There are billboards along local highways showcasing "HEROes" selected by their peers for their designated driving efforts.
And through all of their endeavors, the walks, where the Elliotts connect with people who have gone through the heartache and tragedy of losing a loved one, have the most emotional connection for them.
“Having these walks, having people show up and connect with the message, is what it is about. It is not just about us and our son,” Elliott said. “It is about parents and their kids. They don’t want to get the call that we did.”
Bill Elliott stands in front of the Naval Academy portrait of his son that serves as the iconic image of the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers.
The Elliotts will continue their campaign and it will continue to grow, he assured.
They do it for one reason.
“Losing a child is the worst nightmare parents can imagine. This campaign keeps John’s memory alive for people who knew him and people who have come to know of him and learned how much we love him,” Elliott noted. “The HERO Campaign is not overstating how important a designated driver is. That person saves lives.”
While Bill Elliott describes himself as the “front man” for the campaign, his wife, Muriel, stays behind the scenes, but does just as much, he said.
“One of the things Muriel does as an expression of love for John for events is she bakes John’s favorite chocolate chip oatmeal cookies,” he said. “Sometimes when we are driving around, she says, ‘I love you, John.’”
For more information, visit herocampaign.org or call 609-626-3880.
