Published 9/29/07 in The Times-Herald
BY MEGAN ALMON
megan@newnan.com
Sadly, we are much too often faced with the fact that life can change in a single moment.
On Nov. 11, 2006, 19-year-old Matthew Mullis, a student at Newnan
High School, was driving home in the middle of the night when he fell
asleep at the wheel. His vehicle swerved off the road and hit a tree,
instantly taking his life.
“This has rocked our family to the core,” said Mullis’ sister,
Jennifer Mattingly. The family has channeled their grief, however, to
prevent others from experiencing “that knock on the door” that
Mattingly recalls from the night of Mullis’ death.
Mattingly, who earlier this year organized the first of what she
said will be an annual event to promote teen driver awareness — the
Matthew Mullis Memorial Car, Truck and Motorcycle Show — has organized
a second inaugural event to take place this weekend.
The Matthew Mullis Memorial Mud Bog will be held today and Sunday at Rocky Creek ATV at Culloden, Ga.
The event includes Saturday and Sunday mud bogging, a “kiddie bog” and a night ride to take place Saturday night.
Participants will have access to concessions and vendors, live
music and entertainment and miles of open trails for two days. Camping
is available for those who wish to camp for the night.
Adam Grant and the Robert E. Band, playing country and Southern rock music, are scheduled to perform Saturday at 7 p.m.
Proceeds will go to Coweta’s P.R.I.D.E. — Parents Reducing the
Incidence of Driver Error and to the Matthew Mullis Scholarship Fund.
The fund is set up in his name to provide scholarships to Newnan High
School students.
Mattingly said she hopes enough is raised to purchase a driving
simulator for the Coweta Sheriff’s Office to use in classroom settings
to teach teens defensive driving skills.
For more information, contact Jennifer Mattingly at 770-252-4294, or find directions to Rocky Creek ATV at www.rockycreekatv.com .
“I did this because I can do something for Matthew’s memory each
year in hopes that through him another family won’t have to go through
this,” Mattingly said.
The Matthew Mullis Memorial Car, Truck and Motorcycle Show was “dampered” by heavy rain in July.
The mud bog “can’t be rained out,” Mattingly said.
Both memorial events will be held annually.
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