A local initiative that helps fight drunk driving will not be operating this holiday season.
Home James, a free, volunteer-run program that drives impaired patrons across Chatham-Kent home during the Christmas holidays, will not be offering rides for 2021. This marks the second year in a row that organizers have decided to pump the brakes on offering the service.
"After careful consideration of the safety of our volunteers and the clients we service, it was decided that the Home James program could not operate due to the risks associated COVID-19," read a media release from the organization.
The initiative first started in Chatham-Kent in 2012 and 2020 was the first year that it didn't run.
In 2019 from November 22 to December 31, Home James gave a total of 526 rides, bringing 1,591 people home safe and across a total of 16,180 kilometres.
According to the release, the Home James program looks forward to resuming operations in 2022.
