Photos: If you want to drive, there's only one choice

Programs at the Beacon of Hope Center show students from area schools the experiences and results of impairing their senses.

The Enterprise — Michael Koff

Helping kids to make the right choice: Dean Hale, center, asks students from Voorheesville’s high school on Tuesday morning at the Beacon of Hope Center in Altamont if they plan on going to college. Hale, a recovering addict, told his life story to the students as well as reporting statistics about alcohol and drugs. Behind Hale are a collection of shoes to illustrate deaths caused by drivers who made poor choices.

The Enterprise — Michael Koff

Watching carefully, Altamont Police Officer Mike Greene, standing, observes a student from Clayton A. Bouton High School attempt to drive on a simulator that was set up to respond as if the student had a blood-alcohol content of .15, double the legal limit, to show how it would feel to drive drunk. This is one of the many programs that Ed Frank, a retired police officer, provides for free to area schools and other groups at his Beacon of Hope Center.