As I write this week’s article, I am completing my reclassification training here at the Wisconsin National Guard Military Academy at Fort McCoy. My re-entry into military service has been an amazing experience, and I want to thank all of my fellow soldiers for their willingness to share their knowledge.

It has been 16 years since my last service, and I am both grateful and honored to once again serve my country. It is my hope that this endeavor will make me a better person not only improving me personally, but also provide me additional skills that will make me a better sheriff. I want to also thank all of the Sheriff’s Department staff for taking on additional duties, and of course my family for their patience and understanding during my absence.

Speaking of being proud, I would like to thank all those who coordinated and facilitated the “Every 15 Minutes” program which was held recently in the Algoma and Kewaunee school districts. For those who are not aware of the program, it simulates a fatal accident using our local students as the actors.

It begins with the actual staging of a motor vehicle accident, which is caused by intoxicated driving and/or distracted driving, and takes the audience through everything from the response of Fire and Rescue for extrication and treatment to the arrest of the driver and the subsequent jail booking and court hearing.

It doesn’t end there, however, as not only are the students drawn into the experience but also the parents of those who were designated as victims. Having been part of the death notification portion of this event, I can tell you it really does hit home for both the parents as well as the students.

All of this is filmed and, once compiled and edited, it is shared with the entire student body on the second day. I don’t think that anyone, either young or old, comes away from these programs without a new appreciation for the risks related to driving while intoxicated as well as driving while distracted.

We have lost too many of our loved ones and neighbors to these types of accidents, and it is through programs such as these that we continue to raise awareness and reduce the potential for tragedy. It is through that awareness that hopefully none of us will ever have to answer the door only to be met by the news that one of our loved ones are not coming home.

Matt Joski is the Kewaunee County sheriff.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press Gazette: Sheriff: 'Every 15 Minutes' hits home