A mother who suffered horrific brain and facial injuries following a crash in 2006 says she does not remember the three months before the accident.
Gráinne Kealy from Co Laois was resting her legs on the dashboard when the jeep she was a front seat passenger in crashed into a wall, causing the airbag to deploy.
It has taken her years of hard work and determination to recover to the level she is at now.
Gráinne has helped get the message across about the dangers of feet on a dashboard.
She took the top prize at the Road Safety Authority's annual 'Leading Lights in Road Safety' Awards for 2019 for her awareness campaigns with Gardaí in Thurles.
Gráinne says she does not realise just how dangerous it was at the time of the accident.
"People have said to me online 'Oh God, that's common sense.'
"Well look, I didn't have common sense that day apparently because I don't remember it.
"It's not something I did often, it was very rarely.
"But my only issue that night was the dirt on the soles of my shoes.
"I was like 'Ah, I can put my feet up because they're brand new boots'".
The awards honour the efforts of individuals and groups who promote road safety at national and community level.
The ceremony at Dublin's Croke Park was also attended by Transport Minister Shane Ross and RSA chairperson Liz O'Donnell.
Other awards presented on Wednesday included for Sustainable Travel, a new category for this year, won by Galway Cycle Bus.
The Business Award went to Jacobs Engineering for The Beyond Zero initiative - which inspired staff in the office to switch to cycling and public transport over driving for their daily commute.
And a Special Recognition Award was awarded to the Bantry District Gardaí.
They designed a virtual reality experience to highlight the consequences of not taking road safety seriously.
The project shows people they must prioritise road safety and develop good habits.
It has gone from a small pilot project to a national roll-out.
Main image: Gráinne Healy (right) is presented with her RSA award at Croke Park in Dublin | Image via @RSAIreland on Twitter
Additional reporting: Andrew Lowth
