When Crash Test Dummy drummer Mitch Dorge talks to St. Albert teens next Wednesday he’ll bring a message billed as being In Your Face and Interactive.
“His message is about making the right choices. He’s very passionate about loving life and making sure you have the tools to live life to the fullest,” said Brent Ezzard of Co-operators Insurance that is sponsoring Dorge’s visit.
Ezzard heard Dorge’s motivational speech two years ago and was moved by the way the drummer asked his audience to believe in their dreams, so he approached councillor Dan Wiles at Lorne Akins Junior High School with the idea of bringing Dorge here.
“I did some research and learned that since he was in Grade 3, Dorge knew he wanted to be a drummer. He talks to the kids about how you need to have a goal. You can follow your dream, but the choices you make along the way affect your dreams,” Wiles said.
Wiles spread the word to other councillors in the Protestant school system and as a result Dorge will speak at Lorne Akins, W.D. Cuts and Sir George Simpson junior high schools.
Dorge’s website promotion promises that he will speak to the youths about the dangers of drugs and alcohol abuse, but his lecture will not be a “doom and gloom” presentation. He will have the youths laughing at his antics and enjoying his drumming. Dodge’s clear goal is to get kids to embrace life so that they don’t hit the windshield.
Crash Test Dummies came to fame in the 1990s and their album God Shuffled His Feet sold more than 5.5 million copies.
“He is still active in music but the Crash Test Dummies were most popular before these kids were born. But he lives his dream and that’s an amazing and relevant message for the kids,” Wiles said.
