9/19/2008

Walk This Way

Walk to School Day
Millions of children from countries around the world are planning to walk to school this October for International Walk to School Month and other pedestrian safety initiatives.
International Walk to School Month takes place every October to raise community and global awareness about children’s environmental safety and promote healthy behaviors.
Safe Kids North Central Florida Director, Debora Regan states, “Pedestrian injury remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 5 to 14, claiming the lives of 599 children in 2003 alone. In 2004, more than 38,400 children were treated in emergency rooms for pedestrian-related injuries.” We need to address pedestrian injuries and fatalities and we can do this by using some simple safety steps.
Safe Kids Walk This Way and FedEx have teamed together to teach children about traffic safety, promote safe routes to school, practice modeling healthy behaviors and raise awareness for changes to be implemented for children’s safety in the built environment.
160 Safe Kids coalitions across the USA will hold more than 500 local events at elementary schools. Events will include educational assemblies, press conferences and large group walks to and from school.
Local Event: Duval Elementary, Gainesville FL