The lives of Alice and Robert Korey were shattered last summer when their daughter, Elana, was killed in a car crash on Interstate 89 in Middlesex. The 20-year-old college student was a passenger, and the driver, who also died, was intoxicated and speeding, according to police.
The Koreys, who live in Massachusetts, have started a nonprofit to warn people about the dangers of impaired driving. Ollie’s Angels Foundation, named after Elana’s beloved golden retriever, aims “to raise awareness, in our daughter’s honor, about the irreversible consequences of impaired and reckless driving,” Alice said.
Elana attended the University of Arkansas, where she loved watching SEC football games. Robert Korey came up with the slogan “Catch a Safe Ride” as a simple way to make people think twice before getting behind the wheel.
The Koreys decorated a football with the slogan, a picture of Elana, and Vermont’s famous “Whale Dance” statue. This summer, they faced their grief by returning to the Green Mountain State, football in hand. They sprinkled wildflower seeds at the crash site in their daughter’s honor.
Then Robert and Alice got to work. They were determined to spread the message to as many people as they could, and they had no trouble finding volunteers at their favorite Vermont places to take pictures with the football. The entire Al’s French Frys team in South Burlington even managed to strike a pose during the busy dinner rush.
Robert spent time living in Vermont when he was younger, and the family would vacation here. “We always like to call it our happy place,” Alice said. They lost their daughter but weren’t going to let go of the beautiful state she loved. “I didn’t want any more things to be taken away from us,” she said.
In the next couple of weeks, they’re attending their first event as ambassadors with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and they hope to collaborate with the group to involve student athletes in spreading their message.
“We aim to reach young people across the country and with a simple truth: One safe choice can save a life,” Alice said.
The original print version of this article was headlined “In Loving Memory”
This article appears in Jul 30 – Aug 5, 2025.
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