What a rollercoaster of a year! Onward and upward to 2022! Despite the challenges of the last few years; Kids and Car Safety remains steadfast in our mission of saving the lives of children and pets in and around vehicles.
A HUGE thank you from the bottom of our hearts to those who helped us exceed our holiday fundraising goals, those who supported us with your time and talents and especially to the grieving families who have joined our passionate team after a tragic loss. Each of you shows up time and time again and we cannot do this important work without you.
Below are just a few highlights from our work in 2021. Here's to a new year, new possibilities and new opportunities to make a difference.
|
|
Kids and Car Safety is a nonprofit organization and relies on donations from compassionate people like YOU. |
|
|
Please be sure to follow us on our social sites: |
|
Introducing our fantastic, new staff member, Nancy!! |
Nancy Chamberlain, MS, CPRP, joined the Kids and Car Safety team in October 2021. Nancy spent her youth at her mother’s side working for Consumers Act Now and the American Red Cross. Throughout her career she has championed the interests of foster children, college students, campus safety, summer camp and camp access for low-income youth, juvenile justice, playground safety/design and sales, the environment and rescue dogs, cats, donkeys, and horses. If there is a cause, you want Nancy in your corner. Nancy has over 20 years of experience in curriculum development, teaching, administration and academic advising in service to both the community college and university settings. During her tenure in higher education, she taught risk management, first aid, CPR/AED, and courses related to all things in the great outdoors. Born and raised in St. Louis, she now calls Missouri home again after 31 years in the metropolitan area of Washington, D. C. She has a wonderful husband, son, daughter-in-law and two amazing granddaughters. She has 1 dog, 4 cats, 2 donkeys and 2 horses; all rescued creatures which reside with her and her husband on their little farm. |
|
The Hot Cars Act finally passed
After more than 1,000 deaths and 15 years of advocating for a federal safety standard to protect children and prevent hot car deaths, the Hot Cars Acts passed as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). The bill includes a mandate for action aimed at preventing hot car tragedies.
The passing of the Hot Cars Act is a HUGE victory and step in the right direction, but our work is far from done. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is now responsible for issuing a comprehensive regulation or final rule for the auto industry. It is crucial that the final rule require a system to detect the presence of an occupant in the entire passenger compartment. If not, ineffective systems, which are currently on the market, will give a false sense of security to parents and caregivers of preventing child hot car deaths, but in reality, will not solve this tragic problem.
The most effective systems go beyond a simple alert and also include occupant detection. These systems are readily available and affordable. Stay tuned for our next newsletter where we will dig into the ways we can work together to make this happen.
New Resources on Hot Car Technology
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) reviewed a variety of available technologies and published their findings.
|
|
The PARK IT Act
Great news, due to the number of fatalities and injuries Kids and Car Safety documented, the PARK IT Act passed requiring a safety standard for an automatic shutoff in all new vehicles so that if a vehicle is inadvertently left running, the vehicle will turn itself off to prevent carbon monoxide tragedies. These types of tragedies are common with vehicles that have a keyless ignition feature.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)
In November, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was signed into law which included a number of safety provisions including the two above and others related to vehicles, However, the provisions that passed were watered down or lacking in a number of ways.
Learn more about the safety provisions in the Infrastructure bill - CLICK HERE
|
|
California: A new Good Samaritan law went into effect 1/1/21 to protect citizens from liability if they break into a car to save a child’s life.
Childcare Vehicle Alarm Law
Florida: Child Safety Alarm Act, requires certain childcare vehicles to be equipped with a reliable alarm system to prevent children from being left behind in vehicles; requires the Department of Children and Families to adopt by rule minimum safety standards for such systems and to maintain a list of approved alarm systems, etc.
Child Care Absence Call Laws:
New Jersey is currently the only state that has a law requiring a parent or guardian to notify child care centers if a child will be absent and also requires child care centers to notify a parent or guardian in the event of an unexcused child absence (formerly bill A-3277 / S-559 signed into law on 1/7/2021).
Visit the State Laws page on our website to see what laws your state has in place to protect children.
Don’t miss the Annual Roadmap Report from our friends at Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety ranking each state on a number of safety regulations. How does your state rank?
|
|
Charlie’s House award for “Outstanding Safety Efforts” |
Kids and Car Safety was proud to accept the Outstanding Safety Efforts award from one of our favorite safety partners, Charlie’s House. The award recognizes the outstanding contributions of an organization committed to helping educate the public and parents on best practices in preventing accidents and injuries to children.
We are extremely grateful for the meaningful partnership we have with Charlie’s House and the hardworking people running it. Learn more about how Charlie’s House is working to save children’s lives and prevent home accidents. https://www.charlieshouse.org/
|
|
Fatal Distraction documentary available on demand |
In 2014, Justin Ross Harris was supposed to drop his son off at daycare before going to work. Later that day, Harris found his 22-month-old son, Cooper Harris, dead in the back seat of his vehicle. He has been assumed guilty in the court of public opinion ever since due to misinformation presented by police and others, which led to a malice murder conviction and a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Harris is the only person to ever receive this type of sentence in a hot car fatality case.
Fatal Distraction focuses on the untold story of the high-profile Georgia murder trial of Justin Ross Harris and the mistruths that led to his conviction. The film includes interviews with Kids and Car Safety’s president and founder, Janette Fennell, neuroscientist and memory expert, Dr. David Diamond, as well as a number of Kids and Car Safety parent advocates who have experienced the tragic loss of a child in a hot car.
Official trailer can be found here.
Watch the film on… iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Google Play, YouTube, Microsoft, Vimeo, Comcast, Spectrum, Verizon, Frontier, Shaw, and more
|
|
Podcasts:
“From Kidnap Victim to Auto Safety Expert”, the Resilient People Podcast tells the story of Kids and Car Safety’s president and founder Janette Fennell’s journey starting the organization and her family’s personal survival story
|
|
Below are just a few highlights from some of our speaking engagements, messages from KACS family advocates, press events and more in 2021. |
|
May 19 – Childproof Your Ride press event (Kansas City, MO), Kids and Car Safety was thrilled to welcome two of our family advocates to speak at this exciting event held at Charlie’s House (watch video). Whitney Rodden spoke of the loss of her beautiful daughter, Harper, who died when a grandparent picking up a child at her daycare pulled forward, unable to see her in front of his vehicle. Skye Parker, 11, also spoke and told the story of surviving being backed over by a car as a toddler and given a 3% chance of survival.
|
|
June 15 - At a virtual press event, Norman Collins, pHD (watch video) spoke regarding the need for technology to prevent hot car deaths. Dr. Collins lost his grandson, Norman Lee Van Collins III (Bishop), on May 29, 2011, at only 3-months-old after a miscommunication between Bishop’s father and a fellow churchgoer about who was bringing baby Bishop into church.
|
|
June 30 – Press Event on Capitol Hill (Washington, DC), Kids and Car Safety family advocate, Lindsey Seitz, and her daughter attended the event. Lindsey shared the story of their family’s painful loss of their youngest child, Benjamin, who died in a hot car. During the trip to DC, Lindsey’s daughter got an inside look and ride in an underground subway system. What a way to start her advocacy career in DC!
July - Tucson Medical Center Livestreamed “Mama Chat” with Deona Bien
|
|
July 20 – During a virtual press event, Kids and Car Safety was joined by family advocate, Angela Jones who spoke. (watch video) Angela tragically lost her youngest daughter Charlotte "Charly" at only 3 years old on September 3, 2019. Charly's loving, devoted father unknowingly left her in his car. He was only 20 feet away from her in their driveway, while he worked from home. He had no idea she hadn’t been dropped off at daycare. Also at the event were Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates), joined by U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and U.S. Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce Chair Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), families of truck crash, distracted driving crash, child “hot car” and seatback failure victims, and safety, public health, law enforcement, bicyclist and consumer advocates and discussed the need for safety provisions in the infrastructure bill.
|
|
Sept 21 - Missouri Highway Traffic Safety Conference “Hot Car Dangers” workshop - KACS Director, Amber Rollins was joined by parent advocate Deona Bien to talk about the dangers of hot cars and how to keep children safe. Deona shared the painful loss of her beautiful daughter, Aslyn. |
|
November - Press Event: Rep Schakowsky, Kids and Car Safety parent advocate, Jamie Dill, and other stakeholders discussing auto safety provisions in the Infrastructure bill.
Watch the Dill family tell their story about the loss of their precious son, Oliver. The Dill family has been steadfast in their efforts to honor Ollie and ensure hot car deaths are prevented through occupant detection and alert technology in all vehicles.
|
|
Kids and Car Safety Public Education Programs |
|
Childproof Your Ride
Supported by a grant from State Farm Insurance, this NEW program focuses on educating and training parents and caregivers about the many dangers vehicles present to children and how to mitigate those dangers.
Kids and Car Safety encourages parents and educators to visit the “Childproof Your Ride” website for more information on how to protect children including safety tips, fact sheets, free downloadable/printable materials and much more.
|
|
Look Before You Lock
The program is designed to educate parents and caregivers about hot car dangers and teach them how to prevent tragedies from happening.
Thanks to the generous support of Toyota, we have provided over one million ‘Look Before You Lock’ cards to more than 750 programs nationwide.
We encourage you to share the cards among your networks. Please visit our Hot Cars page for more information, free printable materials, statistics, charts, memes, etc.
|
|
Education Materials Available at our Online Store |
|
Print materials are available in both English and Spanish at our online store. Please check them out and place an order to get started raising awareness in your community today! |
|
A HUGE and very special thank you goes out to our sponsors & major donors. Without you, our work would not be possible. We are eternally grateful for your unwavering support. |
|
State Farm
Toyota
Vayyar – Next Gen Automotive Sensor
AsahiKASEI – Senseair
VOXX Automotive’s SOLO
Freer Logic’s brain sensor technology
CleveryElly
Carseat CoPilot Automatic Alert System
|
|
Payton’s Charm – Venturi, LLC
Safe Ride 4 Kids
The Dana James Foundation
The Fennell family
The Murphy family
The Rodriguez family
The Jones family and friends
The Bridgers & Beaudoin families
|
|
Please consider joining our donor family to help save precious little lives in and around vehicles! |
|
Kids and Car Safety
913-732-2792
www.KidsAndCars.org
|
|
Connect AmazonSmile to Your APP on iOS/Android!! |
Good news! AmazonSmile customers can now support Kids and Cars in the Amazon app!
-
Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ - select "Kids And Cars" as your charity.
- Open the Amazon Shopping app on your device
- Go into the main menu of the Amazon Shopping app and tap into 'Settings'
- Tap 'AmazonSmile' and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
