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Pet Fashion Designer's Death Leads to a Pledge

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I recently read about the tragic death of pet fashion designer Victoria McBryde in the United Kingdom in 2007 and thought I might take this opportunity to share with our readers some information about this bright, creative young lady, and also the lesson for all of us that has come out of her death.

Victoria McBryde was 24 years old when she died. A tire on her car went flat and she had pulled over to the side of the road, but because there was no real shoulder, she was unable to pull over completely out of the traffic lane. Another young woman, 22-year-old Phillipa Curtis, struck McBryde’s vehicle with her own, killing McBryde instantly.

I had the privilege of communicating with McBryde’s sister, Charlotte McBryde, to learn a little bit more about this highly-energetic, beautiful, motivated young woman. Here’s what she said:

“Victoria was an absolute dog lover, and a dedicated owner. She was a kind and gentle girl and a true lover of beauty. She left The University of Northampton with a degree in fashion in which she had specialised in dog accessories. You can see some of her designs and final peices on her MySpace page. She was in the process of getting recognised for her work and had a sponsor in America. Unfortunately she never got round to making actual profit from her work.”

Victoria was a designer of both pet clothing and pet-themed clothing and accessories for humans. In March of 2007, she was part of Alternative Fashion Week in London, with models both human and canine displaying her designs in a runway show. In addition to her designing work, Victoria was a model as well, and a beautiful one at that.

So why share this story now? Traffic accidents happen all the time, right? Well, reading about this one in particular was a “teachable moment” for me. Ms. Curtis was recently sentenced to 21 months in prison as a result of the accident, which British authorities say was caused by an overall distracted state due to texting while driving.

Let me tell you guys, I am guilty of this myself. I know it’s dangerous but somehow I have maintained a very adolescent it-can’t-happen-to-me attitude and continued with this behavior.

The New York Times ran a piece on Victoria and Ms. Curtis last week and reading the paragraph that described the wreckage at the scene of the accident, including some items that sounded like they might have been part of Victoria’s pet designs, really hit home. It absolutely can happen to me and more importantly, my distraction could lead to the loss of another person like Victoria.

It’s going to be really hard for me (which is a little pathetic, don’t you think?), but from today forward I am no longer texting in the car. The phone stays in my purse and I’m putting it out of reach so I’m not even tempted. This can only lead to better driving on my part and I think it’s a fitting tribute to this lovely young lady whom I never had the chance to meet.

I urge the rest of the pet boutique industry to take this same step. One of our own was robbed of her life by this stupid, irresponsible behavior in which so many of us engage. Let’s do our part to make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.

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