Funeral home offers unusual approach to deter drunken driving

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - A funeral home director says South Carolina&#39;s drunken driving rate is so high, he has decided to offer a free burial for anyone who pledges to drink and drive on New Year&#39;s Eve. <br> <br> Grand Strand Funeral Home and Crematory director Chris Burroughs said at first he was hesitant about the anti-drunken driving campaign that a funeral director from Georgia started four years. <br> <br> Then Burroughs, who performs about 11 funerals every year for people who die in drunken-driving crashes, said he heard South Carolina has the nation&#39;s highest rate of alcohol-related traffic deaths. <br> <br> ``Right then, I knew I was going to do it just to let people know it&#39;s not the right thing to do,&#39;&#39; Burroughs said. ``I just didn&#39;t want people to get the wrong idea about the funeral home. If I can make one person stop and think, then our effort&#39;s not in vain.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Operation Stop and Think was founded by Barry Miller of Hope, Ga., after he lost a family member in a drunken-driving accident. Miller owns a funeral home in Tennessee and said about 10 funeral homes in the Southeast are offering the contract to would-be drunk drivers. <br> <br> Anyone with a driver&#39;s license can sign the contract until 2 p.m. New Year&#39;s Eve. <br> <br> ``Nobody&#39;s ever signed it, nor do we intend for anyone to sign it,&#39;&#39; Miller said. ``Sometimes, you&#39;ve got to go to extremes for people to take notice.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Burroughs said he hopes the campaign reminds people of the dangers of drinking and driving. <br> <br> ``Not only does drinking and driving endanger your life, but other people&#39;s lives,&#39;&#39; he said. ``Often the drunken driver&#39;s not killed, but the innocent victim&#39;s killed.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> If the program has any impact at all, it could help reduce drunken-driving fatalities, said Trooper First Class Ashley Mew of the state Highway Patrol. <br> <br> ``Any campaign to deter drinking and driving and educating the public on the consequences will help,&#39;&#39; Mew said.