Woburn High School Hosts Motivational Speaker Cara Filler

by Mairead O'Riordan and Erica Rabito

On Monday April 8, Woburn High had the opportunity to listen to the story from motivational speaker Cara Filler about her twin sister Mairin. The day after their eighteenth birthday, Mairin got into a car with her boyfriend, and due to his dangerous driving, was killed in a high-speed crash. Cara was driving in the car behind her sister and her boyfriend and Cara watched her sister die. Mairin’s decision led to a huge tragedy that changed Cara and Mairin’s loved ones lives forever. Cara uses this experience to tell students from all over the world her sister’s story and to teach kids about how to make the right choice when getting into a car.

These lessons include tips on how to prevent dangerous drivers from getting on the road by hiding their keys in various, often hilarious, places, and offering ways to get you out of a car with a dangerous driver. She calls these emergency tactics “The Three P’s”, and her explanation of how and when to use them are as funny as they are informative. Sophomore Randy Castillo explains how Filler and her tips will influence his life.

“She was inspirational to me as a teenager because she has given me the tools to make better decisions when it comes to getting into a car with someone who could be an erratic driver. I hope she comes back before I graduate” said Castillo.

Not only did Filler teach valuable lessons to the student body, she also touched the staff here at Woburn High. Science teacher Alison Becker was moved by the presentation.

“The speaker was effective and engaging. She really showed the dangers of making bad choices and driving under the influence” said Becker.

In addition to funny anecdotes and pictures from her childhood, the heart of Filler’s presentation is in the description of her sister’s death and how she and everyone who knew her were affected. As twins, they did everything together from wearing the same clothes to working at the same store. The two girls were inseparable, just like Woburn High twins Adrianna and Nicolette Manzi. Nicolette describes how she was affected by the speech.

“Being a twin, I understand the close bond so [I know] how devastating it would be to lose her.  I can imagine how hard it would be to live without her, and hearing Cara’s story really puts it into perspective that it can happen to anyone” explained Manzi.

After Filler gave her presentation twice at the high school, the first for seniors and juniors and the second for sophomores and freshmen, she gave a presentation later that night at the Joyce Middle School for any parents that wanted to attend.

In the busy, fast-paced world we live in, the importance of driving safely can be overlooked as we speed from place to place. Speeches such as these remind people of all ages to think twice before getting into a car, and how our actions and the actions of people we associate with can affect the lives of others.