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AAA Strollerthon Pushes Free Child Passenger Safety
and Booster Seats
(February 12, 2004)
Low-income
families in need of child safety seats or booster seats will benefit
from a new program announced today by AAA Michigan. The Michigan AAA
Strollerthon event will take place July 10 at the Detroit Zoo,
led by AAA Michigan President and COO Doug Bower. The
Strollerthon will roll out simultaneously across The Auto Club Group's
service territory, which covers eight Midwestern states.
Volunteers, made up of AAA employees, members and the public, will walk
or push baby strollers along a marked 1.8-mile route and seek pledges to
raise funds to purchase child safety seats for distribution to families
in need, free of charge. AAA
Michigan will partner with a local non-profit organization, which will
use the collected funds to purchase and distribute child safety seats to
low- income families with children who might otherwise not be able to
afford the proper equipment. Child passenger safety is AAA's major
traffic safety initiative for 2004. "The
AAA Strollerthon adds to our proud, 100-year legacy of traffic safety
programs," said Bower. "This community event is a logical
extension of our efforts to promote safety for this area's youngest
passengers. The Strollerthon and the funds we raise will ensure that
more children, regardless of family income, are seated, safe and secure
in age- and size-appropriate restraint systems in cars and other motor
vehicles throughout our service area." According
to Bower, the AAA Strollerthon will help raise awareness of child
passenger safety issues, in addition to providing free safety seats to
low-income families. During
National Child Passenger Safety Week, which runs February 9 through 13,
AAA Michigan urges parents and caregivers to consider the cost of not
using the right restraint for their child's age and size. Children too
old for infant and toddler child safety seats, but too young to use
adult lap and shoulder safety belts safely, are of special concern. "Most
young passengers between the ages of four and eight need booster seats
to prevent serious injury or death in the event of a crash," said
Bower. "Unfortunately only about 15 percent of this age group
actually uses them." In
2000, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), 1,471 child passengers, from birth to age 14, died in motor
vehicle crashes in the United States. Of the children killed in motor
vehicle crashes during 1999 and 2000, more than half were unrestrained;
18 percent were incorrectly restrained and 35 percent were sitting in
the front seat. AAA
Michigan is joining with other safety organizations to encourage parents
and caregivers to have their child safety seats inspected and to
remember that all children under the age of 13 should ride in the rear
seat of motor vehicles. Parents should also follow these four guidelines
to protect children in motor vehicles: 1.
Rear-facing infant seats - Newborn to 1-year-old and up to 20 pounds. 2.
Forward-facing child safety seats - 1-4 years old, between 20-40 pounds.
Parents are encouraged to keep their children "rear facing" to
the upper weight limit of the seat if they have a
"convertible" (both front and rear facing) child safety seat. 3.
Booster seats - Up to age 8 or about 4'9" tall. The use of both a
lap and shoulder belt is critical. 4.
Adult safety belts - Age 8 and older, at least 4'9" tall. Again, a
lap and shoulder safety belt combination is critical to the safety of
these children. Although
the AAA Strollerthon does not take place until July, parents and
caregivers may benefit from a one-time, limited coupon offer, taking
place now through the end of March. AAA is providing a $10-off coupon,
good for any car seat priced at $30 or more at Toys R Us/Babies R Us.
The coupon can be ordered by calling AAA Michigan at 1-800-646-4222. AAA
also offers year-round child passenger safety seat inspections and
provides information for free car seat inspections performed by other
organizations as well. Please refer to the websites listed below for
locations, dates and times, or to determine if the safety seat you are
using has been subject to any recall or for more information on child
passenger safety.
Find a free child safety seat inspection near you The
Auto Club Group (ACG) is the largest affiliation of AAA clubs in the
Midwest, with 4.1 million members in eight states. ACG clubs belong to
the national AAA federation, a not-for-profit organization with more
than 46 million members in the United States and Canada. Web
site: http://www.aaamich.com/
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