TIWIs

Drum roll, please............here's the post you have been waiting for with baited breath!!!!!

Innocent looking enough, right? I really don't know what the Elders would tell you if you asked them their opinions. I do know one of them said he thought it would be easy to be so worried about what it was going to "say" that you would be distracted from driving safely. And to help the missionaries drive more safely is the whole goal here. This little piece of electronics is about 5X6 inches and about 3/4 of an inch thick. We stick it securely to the windshield in the lower left-hand corner, cord on the bottom, logo up, just as you see it here. Roger keeps the cord out of the way as much as possible (which is really out of the way, if you know Roger) and it plugs into the car's computer.

Every missionary (not the seniors--as they drive their own cars) has a "tiwi card"........this is mine. Roger and I have one because we wanted one and so we can log in and drive the mission cars. It's the size of a credit card. There is a computer chip inside, so when you hold it close or "tap" the tiwi, the tiwi will "say"......"driver logged in". Then they know in Lehi--or wherever the information goes to--that you are driving the car. The tiwi has a GPS in it, so it/they know if you fastened your seat belt, where you are driving (not your destination--where you are at that moment), what time you are driving, how fast you are going, what the speed limit is, if you accelerate too quickly or stop on a dime, if you hit a bump going too fast or take a corner too fast. Those last four give you an "aggressive driving" warning.
And it will talk to you-- "check your speed", "fasten your seat belt" etc. I've never heard the aggressive driving warning, though I tried really hard to get one to see how hard it was. All this data is collected and Roger receives a report every Monday showing which missionaries have been speeding, or driving aggressively. And the missionary is given a red, yellow or green "grade" (for want of a better term) the red and yellow are warnings and Roger has to call the missionary and "coach" them. I don't know how many weeks one has to have a "yellow" to make it yellow for the entire transfer period. But if a missionary "has a yellow" for the transfer period, that's not good. Two transfers in the yellow and the missionary has to watch a defensive driving video and take a test. If he gets a third transfer period in the yellow, he loses his driving privilege for the next transfer period. If he gets a fourth yellow.........he's done driving the rest of his mission. Because of all the information this little jewel gathers, Roger can go online, find the exact place where the violation took place and see it!!!! like on Google Earth!!! It's kind of mind-blowing and a little scary. But it is making such a huge difference in the safety of our missionaries. I wish I could remember the statistics he gave us in the MTC, but I remember thinking then, if something improved my "game" or my "company" that much, I'd certainly use it. Sometimes it is a headache.........but if it saves one life or one serious injury it's worth all the inconvenience. And I truly believe it will make them better missionaries and/or they will be worthy of greater blessings from the Lord. He rewards obedience......as you all well know...........

Any questions? I hope I explained it well enough...........Roger has driven lots of miles in mission cars with a tiwi and it hardly ever talks to him. So I know it can be done! And like I said, I was trying to get one to talk to me.......driving more aggressively than I wanted to. I wondered if the thing was even working!!! till it told me to check my speed. Can't tell you how relieved I was to hear that!!! I didn't want Roger to have to replace it!!