4 Feet: A Life & Death Difference - Keep Kids Alive

Dear Friends,

Last week my son was a front-seat passenger in a car that was broadsided by a large pick-up truck braking frantically at 45 mph. He and the driver were both buckled up. The car was hit on the rear side panel on the passenger side. Four feet of metal kept Michael alive, coming out of the incident with a mild seat belt burn. His friend was okay as well.

4 feet - 48 inches - not much space at all; a little over a yard on a football field. It puts the gift and fragility of life in perspective. It can be the difference between sharing a meal with loved ones or planning a funeral.

Studies conducted by Virginia Tech demonstrate that the 3 seconds prior to a crash make all the difference. There is no stopwatch that begins these 3 seconds. They play over and over again with every moment we are behind the wheel. That is why it is critical to make driving the number one priority - not speeding, not texting, not eating, not running stop signs or signals, not tailgating. These all represent behaviors that sooner or later bound to lead to a crash - one that could have been avoided/prevented if only we gave driving and the rules of road our full and undivided attention.

May each of us observe the rules of the road so that we return to our loved ones and our loved ones return to us each day. And may we remember every loved one who has every died or been permanently disabled as a result of a motor vehicle incident. They too remind us the difference that 4 feet can make.

"Be Aware! Drive With Care"

Tom Everson

www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

Keep Kids Alive - We Have Met the Enemy

Walt Kelly, who penned the comic strip "Pogo," is renowned for writing these words:

"We have met the enemy, and he is us."

When it comes to confronting what needs to be done to make pedestrians, cyclists, and all motorists and passengers safe from speeders, tailgaters, stop-sign and stop-light runners, drivers who don't know how to use blinkers, and those who don't buckle up and become human projectiles, along with all manner of distracted driving - cell phones being the latest incarnation, it all comes down to our behaviors.

We can in fact be the solution we seek. We don't need to look to law enforcement and traffic engineers to solve every problem. Behavioral problems begin and end with the person engaging in the unsafe, uncaring behavior. The question for each of us is, "When I look in the mirror, do I see the solution or the problem?" And then, "If I honestly see the problem in my driving behaviors, am I willing to change to become the solution that prevents deaths and injuries - of the loved ones of others, and, quite possibly, my own loved ones as well?"

The answer to meeting the enemy starts with each one of us.

In safety,

Tom Everson

Keep Kids Alive Drive 25

www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

What's Driving You Mad? Keep Kids Alive!

When it comes to driving, what gets the anger inside you brewing and spewing inside you? Is it people who speed, text, tailgate, don't buckle up, run stop signs and stop lights, fail to signal lane changes or turns?

Whatever is it that drives you mad, what can you do about it?

Realistically we begin by looking at the behaviors we can control - our own. As individuals we can model behaviors, including observing the speed limit, staying off the cell phone, practicing safe space management, buckling up, stopping at stop signs and lights, and signalling our lane changes and turns.

Beyond this, we can work with and through neighborhood organizations and watch groups, school PTAs/PTOs, safety committees through the workplace, and alongside local law enforcement, public works, and civic leaders to create "Keep Kids Alive Drive 25" communities that work to engage everyone in creating safer roadways for the benefit of everyone.

Get started today by visiting KKAD25 Start-up. The life you save might well be your own or that of a loved one. Don't delay, start today at KKAD25 Start-up.

“Don’t let the 2 minutes you ‘save’ be the last 2 minutes of someone’s life.” David Townsend – Tia’s dad

In safety,
Tom Everson
KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25® - A Non-Profit "For Action" Organization 501(c)(3)
402-334-1391
kkad25@kkad25.org
www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

A Sad Refrain, "93,93,93,93,93....." Keep Kids Alive!

Dear Friends in Safety,

For those old enough to remember vinyl records, you can identify with the sound of a song skipping, repeating the same line over and over and over.

The sad refrain when it come to traffic incidents is that the number 93 repeats itself over and over and over again every day of the year. 93 represents the average number of sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, moms, dads - in short, loved ones - who die each and every day of the year on American roadways.

Past research from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that when measured by deaths per miles driven on a particular type of roadway (highway, major arterial, feeder, local) that local roadways, which include all residential streets, have a death rate over twice that of the death rate on highways. This fact is all the more reason to pay attention to our behaviors from the very moment we get behind the wheel and back out of the driveway or pull from the curb - see Kids and Cars. This means we walk around our vehicle in the first place to make sure no children are in the area. Then, we make sure to buckle up, observe the speed limit - or go slower when people of any age are present, stop at all stop signs, and observe all other rules of the road as we begin our journey each day. These are the behaviors that lead us toward the only number that matters when it comes to roadway deaths or injuries - "O!"

Invite your neighbors, and, indeed, your whole community to get involved in making "O" the target for deaths and injuries on all your local roadways. All the information to help you get organized and spring into action can be found at KKAD25 Start-up.

“Don’t let the 2 minutes you ‘save’ be the last 2 minutes of someone’s life.” David Townsend – Tia’s dad.

In safety,
Tom Everson
KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25® - A Non-Profit "For Action" Organization 501(c)(3)
402-334-1391
kkad25@kkad25.org
www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

"Get Green" for Keep Kids Alive Drive 25!

Recycling Cell phones for Keep Kids Alive Drive 25!

Dear Friend of Keep Kids Alive Drive 25,

You and your company are invited to support the mission of Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 without spending or sending any of your own money.

How? By collecting used and unwanted cell phones on our behalf.

Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 is partnering with Get Green to Get Green, a cell phone recycling company dedicated to the ecological disposal of electronic products, to raise money for our mission.

What we are asking you to do is to hold a cell phone fund raiser within your company or community to support the work of Keep Kids Alive Drive 25. You can do this by donating your corporate cell phones the next time you give your employees new ones and by inviting your employees to donate their unwanted cell phones on our behalf. You can also place collection boxes in stores and invite customers to support Keep Kids Alive Drive 25.

Running a cell phone fund raising collection will only take a little of your time but can be a real benefit for Keep Kids Alive Drive 25.

To support us, you need only log on to www.GetGreentoGetGreen.com and do the following:

1. Register at http://ggtogg.com/eco-fundraising/sign-up-today/ Be sure to indicate the number of collection boxes you need. You will then receive these boxes by UPS, information to help you hold the collection, and shipping labels for returning the boxes. There is no charge for these materials.

2. Designate Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 as your charity of choice. You do this by having the check made payable to Keep Kids Alive Drive 25. We will then receive the money earned from your recycled cell phones.

3. Plan and hold the fund raiser. Let your employees know how they can support Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 through this simple and eco-friendly event.

4. When you've completed the collection, seal the boxes, attach the shipping label you've received, and have UPS pick up the boxes.

When the collection is completed we will notify you of the number of phones collected by you on our behalf and the amount of money we received from your efforts. Please let us know when you sign up so we can keep a record of partners.

To learn more about the mission of Keep Kids Alive Drive 25, visit www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org. To learn more about the ecological value of cell phone collection, go to www.getgreentogetgreen.com.

Thank you so much for your continued support of Keep Kids Alive Drive 25.

“Don’t let the 2 minutes you ‘save’ be the last 2 minutes of someone’s life.”

David Townsend – Tia’s dad

In safety,
Tom Everson
KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25® - A Non-Profit "For Action" Organization 501(c)(3)
402-334-1391
kkad25@kkad25.org
www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

Communication Keeps Kids Alive!

Dear Friends in Safety,

Have you ever been frustrated because another driver did not signal before pulling into your lane. Perhaps we ourselves have been guilty of such a manuever at times, catching ourselves only after making the lane change.

The core of our frustration with other drivers, and sometimes ourselves, is a failure to communicate. Good communication is as critical with other drivers as it is in any relationship. The question becomes, "What does our driving communicate?"

• Speeding communicates not only a disregard for the law, but more importantly a disregard for the safety of others, as well as ourselves. No one wants to be the person who hits and injures or kills another. Yet, if we speed our behavior communicates the message that we do not care about the safety of others, let alone ourselves or passengers (often loved ones) in our own vehicle. A AAA Foundation study demonstrates that speeders are 3X more likely to crash than motorists who obey the speed limit. Make a difference on your neighborhood street - Keep Kids Alive Drive 25.
• Stop-sign running is similar in that we show little or no regard for the safety of pedestrians, cyclists, and other motorist who might be entering a crosswalk or intersection protected by a simple message - STOP! The correct approach is to Stop! Take 3 To See - come to a complete STOP. Then,look left, look right, look left again to make sure the intersection is truly clear. These three seconds could save a life, and save yourself a lifetime of regret.
• Tailgating is another form of communication that indicates lack of regard for the safety of others and ourselves. Fully 29% of crashes are attributed to following too close. The ability to create appropriate spacing between our vehicle and others is totally in our control. Remember, "It's Not a Race! Create Space."

May your nerves be calm, and may your behaviors behind the wheel communicate the fact that you indeed care about your own safety as well as the safety of others. People who love you, as well as people you have never met, are depending on you to communicate that you care.

Don’t let the 2 minutes you ‘save’ be the last 2 minutes of someone’s life.” David Townsend – Tia’s dad.

In safety,
Tom Everson
KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25® - A Non-Profit "For Action" Organization 501(c)(3)
402-334-1391
kkad25@kkad25.org
www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org

Thanks to all who financially support the mission of KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25®. Your support is needed all year long. Donate today at KKAD25 Donate. Your generous giving keeps kids living. For more information about us, please click on our KKAD25 GuideStar Non-Profit Report.

Safe Routes to Schools Help Keep Kids Alive

Dear Friends in Traffic Safety,

Recent articles highlight the huge discrepancy in the number of children who walk to school today versus 40 years ago. See:

• Getting Kids to Walk to School
• Safe Routes to School Programs Encourage Active, Safe Trips to School

A key concern for parents is the safety of their children in light of the speed of traffic, drivers running stop signs, and other unsafe driving behaviors.

That is why communities including Hastings, Nebraska and Ridgewood New Jersey have integrated Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 into their Safe Routes to Schools educational efforts to engage all motorists. This helps to create safer neighborhood roadway environments to enable children to walk and ride to and from school. You can do so in your community as well. Simply log on to Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 Start-up to begin planning in your community. Remember also that Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 is available to consult on-site to assist with your planning. Contact kkad25@kkad25.org or call 402-334-1391.

“Don’t let the 2 minutes you ‘save’
be the last 2 minutes of someone’s life.”
David Townsend – Tia’s dad.

In safety,
Tom Everson
KEEP KIDS ALIVE DRIVE 25® - A Non-Profit "For Action" Organization 501(c)(3)
402-334-1391
kkad25@kkad25.org
www.KeepKidsAliveDrive25.org