By Kate Carr
We’ve all had personal or professional experiences that are so meaningful that we’ll remember them forever. I’ll never forget walking through South Africa with a group of people all working to make sure babies were born HIV-free and that their mothers stayed healthy and could care for their children. I’ve also walked hand-in-hand with brain cancer survivors and cheered on marathon runners to raise awareness for many worthwhile causes.
There is nothing more empowering than being part of a sea of people committed to saving lives. It’s those moments that inspired Safe Kids to find a way to highlight our cause by giving all parents a chance to come together around the one thing we care about most: our kids.
Few people realize that preventable injuries are the number one killer of kids in the United States and a serious problem around the globe. I’m not talking about the little things like skinned knees or scraped elbows that go hand in hand with growing up. I’m talking about more serious injuries from car crashes, drownings, poisonings, fires or falls. Each year, more than one million children die from preventable injuries like these. That’s one child every 30 seconds – and millions more are injured in ways that can affect them for a lifetime.
Can you imagine losing a child to an injury that could have been prevented?
But these injuries don’t have to happen. The important thing to know about preventable injuries is that they are preventable. And that’s why we created Safe Kids Day – to bring together families, celebrities, donors and communities to raise awareness and funds to prevent childhood injuries.
On April 23, we’re asking families everywhere to join us by saying “I’m In” to protect kids. We’re making it easy. Just visit safekids.org and click “I’M IN” to get your free digital Safe Kids Kit with easy-to-use resources to protect your children today. Our tips and tools are evidence-based and developed by injury prevention experts.
From the second our babies are born, we’ll do anything we can to keep them safe. Join us on Safe Kids Day to celebrate and protect all kids so they can grow up to be whatever they can imagine. Together, I know we can.