September Newsletter        (Sign up here to get future issues - FREE!)

National Preparedness Month

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has designated September as National Preparedness Month.  This nationwide effort is designed to encourage Americans to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and schools.

The goal of National Preparedness Month is to encourage individuals and families to take a few simple steps to make them better prepared.  Two steps at the top of the list are developing a family emergency plan and creating a family emergency kit.

To download a template for a family emergency plan visit http://www.ready.gov/america/make_a_plan.html

For a complete list of recommended items for your family emergency kit, go to http://www.ready.gov/america/getakit/index.html

Are You Traveling With A Back Seat Bullet?

We all know how important seatbelts and child car seats are.  For the most part, we are successful in getting children to use them.  For one reason or another, there are many adults who think if they are riding in the back seat of a car, they don’t need to bother with a seatbelt.  As of 2003, only a third of our states had a rear seatbelt law for adults.

Last week, I read an article that helped me convince a very stubborn friend to buckle up in the back seat. 

A study published by the Center for Transportation Injury Research in 2003 showed that even when a driver is belted, he or she is 2.3 times more likely to die in a head on crash when a back seat passenger was unrestrained.

Use this information on your own stubborn friends – maybe the idea of becoming a “back seat bullet”, putting YOU in jeopardy, will help them see the light.

Do Your Children Practice Safety When You Aren’t There?

To get an idea of whether your children follow safe practices when you aren’t around, take a look at what YOU do when you’re together.  According to “Follow the Leader”, a Childsafe USA study on safety role modeling among parents and children, the best predictor of your children’s’ safety behavior is the example their parents set.

The results of the “Follow the Leader” study show that children do look to their parents as safety role models (Mom 83%, Dad 72%, Grandparents 64%).  To read more of this study and for other great child safety information, visit http://www.usa.safekids.org. 

Meanwhile, if you want your child to wear a seatbelt or bike helmet or cross the street at a crosswalk – you’ll want to make sure you’re doing these things yourself.

Emergency Contacts Profile Tip

The single most important thing you can do to make your Emergency Contacts membership work best for you is to ensure that your profile is up-to-date.  Has anyone in your profile moved or changed phone numbers since you enrolled?  Is there any important new medical information you need to include for someone in the family?  Click here to see other useful tips.

Not a member?  Sign up here.

(Sign up here to get future issues - FREE!)