You could a hear a pin drop in the silent gym this past Friday, as the mother of Haeley McGuire spoke about the tragic drunk driving accident her daughter was involved in just two weeks before she would have graduated. As pictures of Haeley and the other victims flooded the projector, Mrs. McGuire spoke about Haeley’s life and the Happiness Foundation that was started in her memory.

What started as a simple t-shirt design to console a grieving community, the shirt and Haeley’s legacy has spread throughout the country. Upon receiving the shirt one must make two promises:  To never drink and drive and to never get in the car with a drunk driver.

The Happiness Foundation has spread too many schools, but there is a special meaning to it at Dominion. Heather Green, a member of the 2014 graduating class, and Christain Green, a junior, were cousins of Haeley. Every year, several students choose to keep her spirit alive by selecting Happiness as their DECA Project. This year seniors Agam Jain and Zach Garner and sophomore Meghan Grove chose to present the Happiness project at the State DECA competition.

As very close family friends with the Green’s, this project was very personal to Jain. “Being in such relation with the family and knowing about the project for many years now, I really wanted to participate in the project and finally got to do so for my senior year DECA project,” Jain said.

“I decided to join the Happiness project to show that teenagers aren’t invincible and if they don’t take caution now then they will put their lives in danger,” Grove said.

To raise awareness for the cause, the basketball game against Heritage this past Friday was a “Happiness Out” where D’Block was a sea of neon yellow and black Happiness shirts. Choosing Heritage as the Happiness game was symbolic in the fact that Haeley’s other cousin is a senior at Heritage.

The 3 on 3 tournament this past Saturday raised hundreds of dollars which will go towards the Happiness foundation. “The Happiness Foundation is also about embracing happiness together as a community, and the basetball tournament and the game allowed Dominion to do so in an exciting, positive, and fun manner,” Jain said.