going to prom and graduation and all the kids starting to drink and starting to drive
and go to parties, and she’s like, ‘I think it could be more impactful coming from
someone their age rather than a fifty-something year old man,’” Victoria said. “She
went to Livingston High School and the response we got was overwhelming. There
were 550 students there and parents’ emails and letters and just the positive feedback
and just everything was good for her to help and for her healing. She wants
to make a difference; she really wants to do that. She’s definitely going to try to do
something with this to help so it doesn’t happen to someone else.”
Looking back at her first talk to a student audience, Julia, while nervous, was
proud to share her message. She hopes
to be able to make an impact on those
who hear her tale.
“I was freaking out,” Julia said. “I’m not
good in front of crowds – even at
schools. I get very weird when we have
to present for classes, but I was so happy
to be doing it, and I think I got my message
across when I told everyone. It felt
really good. I got so many people coming
up to me saying what I’m doing is really
good and I’m just happy I got something
positive out of the whole situation and
not just lived with negativity. My message
is to stop drinking and driving.”
Benvenisti admired Julia’s strength
and confidence when sharing her story.
“Julia is the only teen that I’ve ever
come across in my entire 20-year career
as a personal injury attorney and in my
capacity as a member of the board of directors
in MADD National who has
been able to not only comfortably, although
it’s difficult emotionally, talk about
her experience as a victim of drunk driving,
but she wants to make sure what
happened to her doesn’t happen to
other people,” Benvenisti said. “It’s so admirable
that someone her age can have
the maturity and the compassion to want
to make sure that what happened to her doesn’t happen to other people. If you
were to see her speak before one of the student audiences, when she speaks,
every student in the audience is hearing the story from one of their peers. You
can literally hear a pin drop, and what she does is she explains what she went
through. I could not think of something that’s more innocent than a young teen,
13 years old, just going to a friend’s house and then her friend’s dad got drunk
and crashed into her. It’s horrific, and I’m so grateful she survived. I’m even more
grateful she’s able to tell her story in such a constructive way that has the impact
of saving lives.”
28 BC The Mag FALL 2018
Despite suffering pain in her knees, Julia Stuart
pushed forward and rejoined the lacrosse team.
Steven Benvenisti has made a full recovery, despite
doctors initially believing otherwise.