Seat Belt

M.,
I can't begin to understand how you are feeling. But, I am passionate about the seatbelt issue too. My license plate is BKLUP BB!
What kind of help are you looking for?
M.

I'm so sorry to hear about you lost, that must of been so hard. I think it is a great idea to make a seat belt safety awareness pamphlet, I think the best bet for copies would be kinco's, they would be the cheapest.

Margarot,

I am so sorry for you lose, I can not imagine the pain you must be feeling. I think it would be wonderful for you to share your story in the hope of saving others. I have worked in the medical field for over 20 years, including both as an EMT and in the ER, and I preached over and over the importance seatbelts, but the words will mean so much more coming from you. I wish you both comfort and success in your venture. Thank you for being willing to help others. God Bless you.

M., I am very sorry to hear about the loss of your son. I got goose bumps reading your posting. I commend you for wanting to help others. I believe you coule make a difference and it's very much needed especially as in the last 2 days 2 teenagers in the Phoenix area died in seperate auto accidents becuase they weren't wearing their seat belts. You could contact some police and/or fire departments or some schools (public and charter) for speaking engagements. IF your 14 year old is up to it he/she could talk to her classmates. That would probably hit a little closer to home for those kids and make a big impact. God bless.

I would be willing to help do whatever I can..

K.

M.,
First, prayers and hugs for you and your family!
I've been a graphic artist for over 40 years. My contact information is on my website at http://www.winmarkcom.com and I can definitely help you put a pamphlet together. I can also connect you with writers and places to submit your story for publication.
K.

There's a book called "Creative Craft" ( I think that's what is called) subtitle being "writing the story of your life". Reading some material like this might help you write your own experience to help others. I would suggest handing these out at high schools and possibly asking the elementary public schools to send them home with the children at school for parents to see. I'm so sorry to hear about your tragic story. It will remind me to make sure everyone is buckled. Good luck with everything. A.

Hi M.,

I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I'm sure you will get flooded with similar responses; but my heart really goes out to you.

I am so glad you are using your experience to do something good for the community. Perhaps you could include some tips on how to ensure everyone is "buckled up" when they get into the car -- a bell to ring or something.

I wish you many blessings in getting this info together and proliferating it to the community. I have an on-line health and wellness resource center (www.HealthyHabitsWellnessCenter.com) and would live to link to an on-line version of your pamphlet when it becomes available. Please email me at ____@____.com when it’s ready.

Warm Regards,
G. Van Luven

I feel, in a very small way, your pain and I'm sorry you have to go through it. My next door neighbor (female) was killed in an auto accident last October, and I just happened to be the first one to the scene. The good news is that her son who was 5 mo old, was in a carseat. The car was upside down, and he was in great shape. These days when I put my kids in their carseats, I understand more clearly how important it is to buckle up. (P.S. This girl did have her seatbelt on, per the coroner, but her seatbelt failed). I would love to help in any way if needed. M.

I, too, am very sorry for your loss. I can't imagine going through that! But I admire you for wanting to do something positive and to inform others. It is a very large problem. I have lost track of how many times I have pulled up beside someone in a beautiful SUV or expensive van and saw two or three little onces bouncing around in the vehicle, unbelted, unrestrained in car seats. I have actually called 1-800-4Baby and reported some of them. Perhaps you could put that number in the pamphlet. The more tickets they get, perhaps they'll get the message before it's too late. It is such a tragedy to lose a child, as you well know. A senseless tragedy, and I applaud your brave efforts to step up and tell the world of what they should do to avoid being in your shoes. Brava, my friend, brava! Hugs, Kat

I am so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine how painful it must be. My father-in-law is an EMT and he has told me many seatbelt stories without happy endings. I think what your doing is really needed and it is a great way to honor your son.

My love and prayers for you. You're living through something that for those of us who haven't been through it, our minds won't even let us imagine. Reaching out to help others is a good way to heal. Here in our town there is a Health Council that sponsors various kinds of public safety campaigns. There are also programs through the hospital and the First Born program to provide car seats and education. Perhaps there's something similar there and they could help you - or you them. Blessings...

So sorry to hear of your loss. I commend you for wanting to get your story out there to help others. Have you considered putting you story on a website or blog? You could easily email the web address to those you know and ask them to pass it on, and it is amazing how far it would reach.
I wish you peace and comfort during this time.

How amazing of you to go and educate in the name of your son, unfortunatly terrible things/accidents happen and you can be quite possitive that by doing what you are going to do you will have a hand in preventing this from happening to another family, thank you!!
Now my only thoughts of input I have is that my children are 5, 3, and 1, so I personally have to buckle them up everytime. And you must remember the days of running from one side of the car to the other to buckle everone in (I am one of the one w/o a minivan, all three seats are in the backseat and only my hand can manuvure (sp??) the buckles) and it surely isn't the same as running an errand by yourself, hop in and go, but it takes far less than a minute to make the go around and double check that belts are fastend. I know that if no one is reminding and checking it can be very easy to drive away and assume everyone is buckled. I am the driver and I am occationally reminded by my children, and thank them greatly every time. Life is a busy world and forgetfulness happens, before you jump into your drivers seat open the door of your passengers and check their belt before you drive.
I hope that idea sounds good to you and that you can make sense of it to sound quick and easy to do and you are able to make your pamphlet, what a wonderful thing to do! My thoughts and prayer are with you!!
E.

My heart goes out to you. I am glad to hear that you are doing something positive to let others know about the safety of wearing a seatbelt. A friend of my daughter's lost her life as she was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown fron her car. She often said the seatbelt restricted her. I also lost my grandson Andrew (22 months old) in a car accident just over a yeaar ago. He was in a carseat and was strapped in properly. However the way the accident happened he was ejected from the car and thrown into the median on the freeway. I guess it just depends on how the accident happens.

Good luck in your great project. I will keep you in my prayers.

Hi, M.: I am extremely sad that your child is no longer with you physically. You know he will always be in your heart. My husband died in 2006, he was wearing his seatbelt, and I hurt a lot. But no matter how much I hurt, I knew and know, that nobody can ever hurt more than my mother-in-law. In March of 2007 I was told I could lose my boy, 8 years old, and my whole world just came down on me. Losing a husband and losing a child is different. Thank God I didn't lose my child, but just thinking about it... that's a whole new different kind of darkness that I don't wish on my worst enemy. I don't know if you have gotten any help. I translated a book that I will recommend (no, I don't get anything from recommending it) It's called "Gifts my father gave me." The author is my friend, she lost her son when he was 6 years old, and then her police officer husband. It helped me a lot and it also includes some bereavement help. But in the mean time, you could also look for help here: www.bereavedparentsusa.org.
Either way, I think it is a wonderful thing that you are on this crusade. I wish you the best. I agree that maybe you could talk to school officials to instill the message on children. And also include private schools as well.

Take care of yourself. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

Thoughts and prayers go out to you and your family! I am deeply sorry for your loss!!!

What an awesome idea for you to do this, getting your story out there could help so many!

M.,
You, your children, and family are in my thoughts and prayers. I could not imagine going through such a tragedy.
I agree 2000 percent - it cannot be repeated enough, the value of "buckeling up". I too think circulating these through the school systems ect and pehaps distributing them through convenience stores is a good idea.
People need a reminder of what we might think is "basic".
God bless you, your precious angels, and your family.
With my deepest sympathy.
A.

M., I am so sorry and can't imagine your loss. I'm an insurance agent in the Phoenix area and have on the back of my car child vehicle safty info along with my business info. I have an 8 and 5 yo and drive past several schools daily. The reason I put the safty info on my car is that I was ALARMED at the NUMBER of parents driving their kids to school with them just sitting in the car with no seat belts, jumping from seat to seat, hanging out the window, small children in the front, IN THE BED OF TRUCKS, etc. I was so stressed by this, I put this on the entire back of my car: "Are you keeping your own kids safe? Kids age 12 and under BACK SEAT ONLY! Arizona accidents happen close to home and in a SPLIT second...please don't put your own kids at risk! and BUCKLE UP EVERYONE!" Being in insurance for 20+ years, I know why these parents are like this, because they think IT CAN'T HAPPEN TO THEM. Well, it does, every single day. And I just don't understand why they are teaching kids this very bad and unsafe habit. These small children grow up to driving teens and are not safe! Well, enough of that, it's just such a sore subject with me! Thanks for doing all you can to help spread the word! I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle, but my determination has been refueled by your story and I will again be actively trying to make parents aware in my area. We did have 3 serious teenage accidents in the Phoenix area within 24 hours. Arizona is second highest in insurance rates because of this! Please contact me directly if I can help you at all! My family is from Big Timber MT! My website is www.agentlady.com and my email is ____@____.com. Maybe I can get your story in writing and post it on my website!!!! Again, I'm so sorry for your loss! Please contact me if I can help! F.

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. Is there anything that I can do?

M.,
I would love to help you in your efforts. My husband is a safety specialist for General Motors and has been heavily involved in public awareness as well as driver training for police and fire departments. If you would like to have his information to contact a professional about your pamplet, I can give you what you need. My email address is ____@____.com is a very good man with two sons and a tender heart. I know He could help.

I am so sorry to know about your loss. I am a professional freelance graphic designer and I would be willing to work with you in creating such a distributable document. If you are interested please get in touch with me at ###-###-#### or ____@____.com to discuss the options.

There are several self-publishing sites that are free to create the pamphlet/book and you only pay to purchase the finished product.

Vista Print often offers specials for 25 brochures at a time - free printing - you only pay the shipping costs.

Instantpublisher.com - self-publishing web site

Lulu.com - self-publishing web site

Thank you for wanting to share your story with others.

Blessings,
M. M. Ernsberger
Children & Family Life Coach
www.hypno4kids.com