On September 24, 2021, Shadow Ridge will hold a school-wide yellow out in honor of Hillary LaVoie, the Men’s Varsity Soccer Coaches, oldest daughter, a Shadow Ridge Alumni, who passed away in a car crash on September 26, 2010, from not wearing her seatbelt. Students will sign pledges at lunch, to vow their part in making sure all passengers in their cars are wearing a seatbelt. This school-wide yellow out will roll over into the Women’s Varsity Soccer game on the new turf of the football field. The players will wear yellow warmup shirts, and yellow headbands to show their support. These yellow outs have been held on campus for 8 years, and off campus since 2011. Yellow was Hillary’s favorite color, so that’s why yellow is the chosen color, but more importantly the yellow represents safe teen driving.
“For me the school yellow outs represent the support, respect, and love that Shadow Ridge has always shown me. It is extremely important to me that the students understand that the yellow outs represent SAFE TEEN DRIVING so that other families do not have to go through the pain that my family does,” states Brian LaVoie, then Men’s Varsity Soccer Coach.
Hillary loved and adored all things school. Shadow Ridge was her happy place. It offered her happiness, education, and so much more.

Gallery • 6 Photos

Photo Courtesy of: Abby LaVoie

Hillary's sisters, Ally LaVoie (left) and Abby LaVoie (right)

“The event at Shadow means more to us than all the other events we have because Shadow Ridge was Hillary’s favorite place to be. She loved school and everything that it offered her,” explains LaVoie.
The act of wearing yellow may seem simple and easy, but it is not just about wearing yellow. This is about spreading awareness of always wearing a seatbelt, and it is an easy way to remind students of how important safe driving is. The simple message here is that seatbelts save lives.

The driver of the crash was belted and walked away. If the seatbelt saved the driver’s life, then it’s a question of, “Would the seatbelt have saved Hillary’s life?”
“This is not about wearing yellow, it’s about the message of safe teen driving with an emphasis on always wearing a seat belt. By creating an event that includes every student, the yellow out is an easy way for us to remind students how important safe teen driving is,” says LaVoie.
Junior, Paige Dunn is close with the LaVoie family and seeing the yellow reminds her how important family is, and it also brings joy in Hillary’s memory.
“We wear the color to show how we carry her spirit with us and we spread awareness about wearing seatbelts. In addition to the awareness, the color yellow is a representation of how bright and joyful Hillary was,” states Dunn.
Overall, the color yellow represents a lot more than just Hillary and her joyful personality. It is about the importance of safe driving. It is important for teens to be safe and aware of all passengers in their vehicle, but also for adults. Anyone driving a motor vehicle should make sure ALL of their passengers are wearing a seatbelt, no matter the distance.