The Safe Kids Oklahoma team is reaching children and families throughout the state this summer.
June is National Safety Month and the team at Safe Kids Oklahoma is gearing up for summer events to raise awareness of safety issues that affect children and families throughout Oklahoma.
Safe Kids Oklahoma has been expanding their outreach to rural areas and underserved populations. Recently, Safe Kids Day at the Oklahoma City Zoo had two new booths: one that focused on supporting Hispanic families in the community with many materials in Spanish, and a booth offering injury prevention ideas for families of children with disabilities.
Safe Kids Oklahoma also recently collaborated with Safe Kids Na-i-sha to train Child Passenger Safety (CPS) technicians in eight rural tribal communities, including:
- Wewoka Indian Health Clinic
- Indian Health Service
- Kiowa Tribe Head Start
- Apache Tribe Health Programs
- Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes
- Comanche County Health Department
- Comanche Nation
- Kiowa Tribe Head Start
Many of these organizations will be distributing car seats to families within their communities.
Safe Kids will host a Car Seat Check on June 19th from 10am – 12pm at the Piedmont Fire Department (314 Edmond Rd NW, Piedmont, OK 73078). Be sure to check the Safe Kids Oklahoma Facebook page for information on Car Seat Checks in your community.
The team will also be hosting Safe Kids Day in Anadarko on June 23rd from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. at Iscani Community Pool & Aquatic Center (103 E Coronado Cir, Anadarko, OK 73005). This event will feature Injury prevention booths covering a variety of topics, and a car seat event to support new CPS technicians in the area.
Here in Oklahoma City, look for the new CPS van in the Bethany Freedom Fest Parade, Saturday July 1st!
The Safe Kids Oklahoma Bike & Pedestrian Safety Program will be visiting many summer programs in the Oklahoma City Public Schools, YMCAs, Libraries, and Childcare organizations.
Summer is also a great time to focus on ATV safety! ATV Ride Safe Oklahoma has several dates over the summer for rider courses at Zink Scout Ranch in Skiatook, OK. Please email bklumpp@bethanychildrens.org if you are interested in a hands-on course.
Safe Kids Oklahoma Director of Injury Prevention, Elizabeth Koldoff, urges, “Summer is a season to be outdoors with friends & family and make great memories. Every child deserves a safe summer – so don’t learn safety by accident! Keep safety in mind so a wonderful time doesn’t turn into a tragedy.”