OC HIGH / STUDENT NEWS & VIEWS : SOBERING THOUGHT : Driving: Since the confidential Safe Rides program was established at Los Alamitos High School six years ago, no student has been lost to drunk driving.

It was six years ago that Jennifer Slusher, then a sophomore at Los Alamitos High School, heard about Safe Rides, a student-run program that provides confidential, free rides home to anyone too intoxicated to drive safely.

It was the same year that two boys, a senior and junior at Los Alamitos, were killed in an alcohol-related driving accident.

That tragedy spurred Slusher to action, and through her efforts a Safe Rides program was begun at Los Alamitos. Slusher took her idea to Interact service club adviser and teacher Jim Cross, who helped her gather information and present her idea to the school board.

Once approved, the group needed a place to operate. Los Alamitos Youth Center offered space on Friday and Saturday nights.

After Slusher got the word out, students signed on to help. At first, the volunteers were met by silent phones. So “when the phone rang for the first time . . . we jumped,” Slusher recalls.

But since the program was established, no Los Alamitos student has been lost to drunk driving.

The Los Alamitos Safe Rides group provides service from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights during the school year. More than 150 students participate, rotating duties so that no one has to work every weekend, said Emily Schlumpf, a senior who now heads the program. Student volunteers run the program, although an adult acts as a chaperone at the phone center.

The volume of calls varies each weekend, Schlumpf said. “Sometimes we get four to five calls a weekend, sometimes 10, sometimes none.”

The service is totally confidential, she says. No one is notified, so there is no stigma attached to calling for help. “Sometimes we do get repeat calls--the same group of people who might be out partying each weekend,” Schlumpf said.

When a call for assistance is received, a Safe Rides team hits the road. One student is the driver, the other the navigator.

Sometimes a student who is too intoxicated to drive will call for help. Other times a friend will call for that person. You don’t have to be intoxicated to use the service. If your date or friend is drunk, you can get a ride home for yourself.

“Kids care for each other at Los Alamitos. They are good about designating drivers if they are going to a party, and calling Safe Rides when needed is an accepted thing to do,” Schlumpf said.

It’s easy to get in touch. The Safe Rides number is printed on the back of every Los Alamitos student’s ID card.

The rewards of being a Safe Rides volunteer are many, but the words “you saved my life” are always the most gratifying, Schlumpf said.

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There are about 650 Safe Rides organizations in the United States. To get information on starting a program at your school, call the Boy Scouts of America Exploring Division at (714) 546-4990. You don’t have to provide a car or even be able to drive. The program always needs phone operators and riders.

Service hours and days are set by each program, but typical hours are 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights. Some programs run year-round, others only during holiday and prom seasons.

Five Safe Ride programs now operate in Orange County. Service area is limited to the high schools’ geographical boundaries, with the exception of a program that covers all of South County. The programs and phone numbers are:

* Los Alamitos High School, (310) 596-4747.

* Laguna Beach High School, (714) 497-3333.

* Villa Park High School, (714) 998-SADD.

* Irvine high schools, (714) 474-SAFE.

* South Orange County, (800) 273-RIDE.