Berea students have places to get to: internships, service work, jobs; they go all over the country and the world. Outside of the urban areas of the United States, being able to drive and maintain a car is an essential part of being mobile.
Ron Deavor, whom some Berea students may know as Mr. Defensive Driving, is a Public Safety officer who helps students take care of their personal vehicles by educating them about the seemingly minuscule preventative measures that can save lives. As the leader of the College’s Lights Out program, he inspects students’ vehicles for essential maintenance components like checking tire pressures, fluid levels and the headlight and brake light condition.
During the small window of time he gets to work on the vehicles, he talks to students about the mechanics of upkeep of a car. It is how he supports students before periods of travel like the summer and winter breaks.
“You have to be mobile to participate in this society,” Deavor said. “And in (rural) American society where we don’t have public transit, it depends on personal vehicles. It is important to get to a job interview, a job or an internship. Doing all those things requires mobility: safe mobility.”
Deaver reminds students the scale to which small issues can escalate if they are left unattended for long periods of time. In the two years since the program started, Deavor has successfully identified substantial problems with some students’ cars and fixed them or advised them on what to do. Deavor is cognizant of the benefits of small preventative measures and is committed to keeping students safe in their journeys outside Berea.
