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Seehafer is also involved in the Order of the Arrow, a scouting honor society.

Kristen Churkey, Diane Kee, Zach Pagel and Lexi Zuleger

Following the tragic death of their friend Lacey Meinel, who was killed by a drunken driver, these teens turned their grief into a drive to change Wisconsin's alcohol culture. They made an active push to change the state's laws, advocating a set of stricter penalties and policy changes under the name Lacey's Law.

"We all know that Wisconsin is a big drinking state," said Zach Pagel, 15, of Kronenwetter. "And it's really ingrained in the culture, and it's not an easy thing to fix."

"I feel like a bittersweet feeling," said Lexi Zuleger, 15, of Weston. The drive to accomplish something meaningful around drunken driving is paired, for Zuleger and the other students, with the knowledge that it was Lacey's tragic death that occasioned it.

"I was friends with Lacey since I was 3 or 4, and when I heard about her death, it just devastated me," said Kristen Churkey, 15, of Kronenwetter. "We shouldn't have to have as many drunken driving deaths in Wisconsin as we do to make the laws change."

The students' efforts to change Wisconsin's laws and its culture were not limited to merely calling for things to change: They went out and appealed directly to lawmakers. They had an audience with state lawmakers from Rep. Donna Seidel, D-Wausau, to Gov. Jim Doyle. And when Doyle last week signed the new set of laws aimed at limiting drunken driving, students representing Lacey's Law campaign were standing behind him.

Another part of their efforts came in the form of Lacey's Pledge, in which they asked their peers to promise not to drink and drive, and asked lawmakers to pledge to resign if they were convicted of drunken driving. Although few state lawmakers signed on, the fact of asking them itself brought a spotlight on the issue.

"A lot of people have joined our cause," said Zuleger. "It's surprising how something so small just kind of exploded into this whole chain reaction."

"I definitely feel like there have been moments of frustration where it's just like: How did it have to come to this for someone to take action?" said Diane Kee, 15, of Weston. "But definitely, there have been moments, where (we feel) like we've really succeeded, as students, in getting something accomplished."