Survivor Talks About the Cost of a Few Drinks

[Howard Hartman]

The Gazette
Peggy Vaughn

Survivor Talks About the Cost of a Few Drinks

Man who lived through crash caused by underage drinking tells Bullis students about the risks

Brandon Silveria struggled to find the right words about the dangers of underage drinking at a pre-prom assembly for high school students at the Bullis School in Potomac.

Silveria’s speech is garbled from the traumatic brain injuries he suffered at age 17 after drinking a couple of beers and driving into a tree. But as the former star athlete spoke of having to relearn how to walk, talk and even swallow, his message came across loud and clear to the teens straining to hear every word.

Peer pressure to have a few drinks, to look cool, cost him everything, he said.

‘‘I had the world at my fingertips. It all changed because of a simple choice I made ... to drink a couple of beers,” he said. ‘‘After all, I was invincible. Nothing was going to happen to me, right? Right.”

Now 37, Silveria and his father, Tony, travel the country providing living proof that the consequences of underage drinking can last a lifetime.

‘‘I had to relearn everything, and I do mean everything — to walk, to talk, to think,” Silveria said of the brain damage that prevented him from finishing high school or attending college. His short term memory is so bad, he cannot remember what he had for breakfast and reads a speech he’s given hundreds of times from note cards.

‘‘Take one last look at me and ask yourself, ‘Is it worth it for a couple of beers?’” he said.

But still, he knows he is lucky to have survived the crash.

‘‘[Brandon’s] speech sucks, and it’s hard for him,” Tony Silveria said. ‘‘But we’re lucky to have him alive.”

Their appearance at Bullis two weeks ago was sponsored by Del. William A. Bronrott (D-Dist. 16) of Bethesda, a 25-year advocate against drunk driving, and the Century Council, a nonprofit organization funded by distillers that advocates against underage drinking.

Silveria has spoken to some 2 million students nationwide about making responsible choices, Bronrott told the students.

‘‘Alcohol kills far more teens than all the illicit drugs combined ... and highway crashes are the number one cause of death of young people,” Bronrott said. ‘‘That’s you. So make the right choice this prom and graduation season and throughout the year.”

A few weeks before his own 1987 prom Silveria decided to party with some friends. He never made it home that night, or for the next two years.

‘‘Think about going to a party ... and having your life change 180 degrees in a negative direction,” Tony Silveria said. ‘‘This is a guy that used to go to a basketball court and dunk with ease. Now he has trouble walking down a court.”

His son spent weeks in a coma and then two years at a rehabilitation center. The medical bills top $4 million, he said.

‘‘Seven out of 10 families come apart after a trauma like this,” he said. ‘‘It destroys families emotionally. It’s a roller coaster ride to hell.”

He gave students some advice.

‘‘The test of your friendships is when your pal makes the wrong choice, step up ... and get those keys away,” Tony Silveria said. ‘‘You can celebrate life and have a good time without alcohol.”

Students gave the talk two thumbs up and a standing ovation.

Two juniors planning to attend the school’s prom said they expected to hear just another ho-hum pitch against drinking at the prom from police or school administrators. Instead, they witnessed the devastation underage drinking wrought in one family.

‘‘Cops tell these stories, but here was a living example of what happens when you drink and drive,” said Laura Gleiberman, 17, of Potomac.

Her friend Merideth Ledgard, 17, of Darnestown, said straining to understand Brandon Silveria’s speech made his story all the more heartrending.

‘‘I heard a boy crying, and boys never cry,” she said. ‘‘People were shocked. This is serious stuff.”