SMS
📱 NEW EPISODE: “SMS” 🚪 How many of us have texted while driving? 🚪 Be honest. 🚪 Maybe it’s a quick reply. Maybe you’re changing a song. Maybe you glance down for just a second. 🚪 But what if that second changes someone’s life forever? 🚪 This week on Other People’s Shoes, I sit down with Dave Booth, whose life changed in an instant when a teenage driver slammed into him at nearly 75 mph while traffic was backed up. 🚪 This conversation gets real. 🚪 We talk about phone addiction, distracted driving, and the hard question most of us avoid asking ourselves: 🚪 Is that text message worth someone’s life? 🚪 Dave shares his story of survival, forgiveness, and why he now uses his experience to educate others about the dangers of distracted driving. 🚪 We also talk about: 🚪 🚗 The crash that changed everything ⚖️ Oregon’s hands-free driving law 🤝 The power of forgiveness after tragedy 🎖️ How something as simple as a duty belt helped hold life together 🐱 And yes… how the song “Soft Kitty” played a surprising role in healing 🚪 The truth is simple: 🚪 Every time we get behind the wheel, we’re responsible for more than just ourselves. 🚪 This episode might make you think twice the next time your phone buzzes.
🎙 SMS
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Who’s There? 🚪
This season explores the moments when life knocks on our door. Sometimes the knock is quiet. Sometimes it’s loud enough to shake everything we thought we knew. “Who’s There?” is about those moments that stop us in our tracks and force us to answer the door to truth, change, and responsibility.
👣 Guest Introduction: Dave Booth
How many of us have sent a text while driving?
Or remember the days before Bluetooth when we held our phones up to our ear while cruising down the road?
If I’m being honest… I struggle with a phone addiction. It’s easy to joke about. Easy to brush off. But the question that sits heavy on my mind is this:
Could one text message cost someone their life?
That message you just have to send.
That song you feel like you have to hear right now.
That quick glance down at the screen.
Today’s guest, Dave Booth, knows exactly how dangerous that moment can be.
Dave was sitting in backed-up traffic when everything changed. A teenage driver, distracted behind the wheel, slammed into him at roughly 75 miles per hour while Dave was traveling about 35 mph.
In a split second, life became a before-and-after story.
This conversation isn’t just about texting and driving. It’s about responsibility, forgiveness, healing, and the question many people struggle with after tragedy:
Can you forgive the person who almost took your life?
💡 Episode Highlights
📱 SMS: Short Message Service the everyday texting habit many of us don’t think twice about
🚗 The crash that changed Dave’s life in an instant
⚖️ Understanding the real dangers of distracted driving
🧠 What happens when our phone habits become an addiction
🎖️ How something as simple as a duty belt can help hold life together
🤝 Wrestling with forgiveness after someone nearly takes your life
🗣️ Turning personal trauma into education that can save others
🐱 And yes… how the song “Soft Kitty” can actually play a role in healing
⚖️ Oregon’s Hands-Free Driving Law (ORS 811.507)
Oregon law strictly prohibits holding or using a mobile electronic device while driving — even while stopped in traffic or at a red light.
Key points of the law:
📵 Holding a phone, texting, browsing, or watching videos while driving is illegal
🎧 Drivers 18+ may only use hands-free accessories (Bluetooth, headset, mounted devices) with voice commands or a single touch/swipe
🚫 Drivers under 18 cannot use phones at all while driving — even hands-free
🚑 Exceptions only apply when contacting emergency services or when safely parked on the roadside
Penalties
First offense: up to $1,000 fine
Second offense: up to $2,500 fine
Third offense: may become a criminal misdemeanor with possible jail time
📊 The Reality of Distracted Driving
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):
⚠️ 3,275 people died in distracted driving crashes in 2023
🚑 324,000+ injuries occurred from distracted driving crashes
📅 On average, 9 people die every single day due to distracted driving
📱 At any given moment, 326,000 drivers are using handheld devices
🚗 Reading a text takes your eyes off the road for about 5 seconds the equivalent of driving a football field blindfolded at highway speed
📉 Texting while driving increases crash risk 23 times
🔍 Takeaway Questions
This episode asks some hard but important questions:
Is sending a text message worth someone’s life?
What responsibility do we carry every time we get behind the wheel?
Can you forgive someone whose mistake nearly killed you?
How can personal stories help educate others before tragedy strikes?
🔗 Connect with Dave Booth
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/davebooth07
🎧 Listen & Follow Other People’s Shoes
📺 YouTube
👟 Website
📣 Leave Us a Review
If this episode made you pause… think… or look at your phone a little differently the next time you drive, don’t keep that to yourself.
Leave a review and tell us how stepping into Dave’s shoes changed your perspective.
👉 https://www.opspodcast.com/reviews/new/
