Some Safe Driving Weeks begin with a table on campus and a simple invitation to sign a pledge. But behind that moment is often something much deeper: the memory of a life that still matters and a family determined to help others make safer choices.

At Iowa State University, Phi Kappa Psi partnered with Hunter’s Fund to honor Paul Troupe, a fraternity brother whose life was taken by a distracted driver in 2014. Through “Paul’s Pledge,” students are invited to stop, think, and commit to driving with more care and attention.

Paul was the kind of person people believed in. At Omaha Skutt Catholic High School, his senior classmates voted him “most likely to make a difference.” He was also captain of the cross-country team, a role that reflected both his leadership and his steady determination. Later, at Iowa State, Paul studied engineering and graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Aeronautical Engineering.

He had already begun building the future he worked so hard for. Paul had recently moved to Saint Charles, Missouri, to work at Boeing with his wife. He was just days away from his twenty-third birthday.

In Fall 2020, Iowa State’s Phi Kappa Psi chapter launched Paul’s Pledge in his memory. Even during a time when COVID-19 reduced campus traffic and limited activity, the brothers set up a table, started conversations, raised more than $1,000, and gathered nearly 300 pledges from students willing to commit to safer driving. Paul’s parents then matched the donation, doubling the support behind the effort.

That response says a great deal about what this campaign means. For Paul’s family, this work became a way to help others see that distracted driving can change everything in a moment. For students on campus, Paul’s Pledge is a reminder that safe driving is not abstract. It is personal. It is daily. And it is one way people can look out for one another.

Because of donor support, campaigns like this continue to grow. Paul’s story is still being shared, his memory is still guiding others, and a simple pledge on a college campus continues to carry his life forward in a meaningful way.