New Grant Awarded for Mobile Unit of Passenger Safety Seat Program of the Lee Memorial Health System

"The mobile unit will enable us to inspect more child safety seats throughout Lee and Collier county, to keep children safe, and to educate parents, grandparents, and care providers on the importance of a properly installed child passenger safety seat,"

The statement above came from Michele King, the director of the Child Advocacy, The Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida. The hospital, part of the Lee Memorial Health System Foundation recently announced that it received a grant of $10,000 from the The League Club, Inc. The money will be used to purchase a mobile unit for the Hospital’s Child Passenger Safety Seat Program.

"Without the grant from The League Club, Inc. we would have been unable to purchase the mobile safety unit this year,"

Who is The League Club, Inc.?

From their site,

The League Club, Inc. is a nonprofit organization of women strengthening communities through fellowship, education, volunteerism and philanthropy. The League Club supports the community financially through its Community Trust Fund, having awarded grants totaling nearly $2 million to nonprofit agencies in Collier and Lee counties since 1987. For more information please visit us at www.theleagueclub.org.

As we know, proper installation of car seats is vital for the child’s safety in the car. With statistics telling us that 80 percent or more of car seats are improperly installed, programs like that by the hospital is quite important to educate parents and caregivers. Good thing for the League Club to step up and help out. Thanks to them, with the mobile unit, the hospital can reach out to more people.

For residents in the Lee and Collier county area in Florida, the hospital’s program provides free car seat inspections at day care centers, safety fairs, and other agencies including the Guadalupe Center, Redlands Christian Migrant Association, the YMCA and the Child Advocacy Center of Collier County. As the lead agency for the Safe Kids Lee/Collier Coalition, the Children's Hospital's child advocacy program staff are responsible for the recording and reporting of the related data to the Florida Department of Transportation and to Safe Kids Worldwide.

"We are pleased to make this grant supporting the Children's Hospital", said Trig Cooley, The League Club, Inc.'s 2009 Civic Involvement Committee Chair, who oversaw the grant selection process.

Favorite Car Seat Brands

Below are just some of the most popular car seat brands available to your child. The price ranges from the low to the high-end. Low price doesn’t mean lower quality and higher price doesn’t mean high quality as well. Better check products from each car seat manufacturers if you’re on the lookout for a new car seat for your child. Between all of them, they should carry all types of car seats for children of different shapes and sizes. Again, I would like to reiterate that you should always follow the manufacturer guidelines for proper usage of the seats. You don’t want to err on the most important rule of car seat usage and that is “correct installation”.

Favorite Car Seat Brands (in no particular order)

1. Britax

 Britax has been a pioneer in child passenger safety for more than 35 years, with a legacy of leadership in developing innovations that enhance the safety of child seats and improve their ease of installation and use. Our uncompromising focus has made Britax the best-selling child seat in Europe and one of the brands most trusted by American parents and caregivers since entering the U.S. market in 1996. Our commitment to improving child safety is unparalleled, as evidenced by the fact that our products undergo the most rigorous testing in our industry at five Britax testing facilities worldwide.

2. Cosco (by Dorel)

For over 25 years, Dorel Juvenile Group has been dedicated to helping provide a safer world for children. Our disciplined approach to product development is showcased by our diverse portfolio of powerful brands and innovative products. Each brand encompasses a vast breath of products – from car seats to strollers, high chairs to play yards, monitors to childproofing products, and more – proving year after year why we’re the leader in the juvenile industry.

Today Dorel Juvenile Group manufacturers the Safety 1^st®, Cosco®, Quinny® and Maxi-Cosi® brands as well as licensed brands including Disney® and Eddie Bauer®. Dorel Juvenile Group attributes its success to an unwavering commitment to safety and value. It’s what parents have grown to expect from the company: improved convenience, durability, safety and product innovation.

3. Chicco

Pietro Catelli, Artsana founder and president, was born in Como on April 14, 1920. Awarded the honorary title of "Cavaliere del Lavoro", Catelli has always centered his career on human relationships and a contagious love of his work. In the post-war years he managed to take advantage of the synergy between product quality, brand identity and the power of communications. He established Artsana in Como in 1946 to produce and sell hypodermic needles, thermometers and syringes. The Chicco brand was born in 1958, along with Catelli's first son, Enrico.

4. Graco

Graco continues its tradition of innovation, with products like the imonitor™ Digital Baby Monitor and the compact folding Contempo™ Highchair. In 1998, Graco proudly acquired Century Car Seats, combining two of the most respected brand names in baby products, and leading to innovative products like the TurboBooster® SafeSeat™ (Step 3) youth booster car seat. Today, Graco is a Newell Rubbermaid™ company, with 1500 associates worldwide. While a half-century has brought many changes to Graco, the dedication and commitment to designing and manufacturing top-quality products—products that inspire parents and babies alike—remains, and continues on.

5. Combi

Combi makes your daily life more enjoyable and comfortable as we aim at bringing you a creative and heart-warming lifestyle. A shortening of the word "combination" which itself refers to the combination of mother and child, Combi provides products and services that establish wholesome environments to support the healthy growth of infants.

With our eyes on the global community, we are rapidly expanding from our core focus on mothers and children into the overall lifestyles of families. We also plan a global expansion of our activities and efforts in the area of "quality", "brand recognition" and "revitalization of people and organization".

6. Peg Perego

It’s been said that the best ideas are born of necessity and this is certainly true of Peg Perego, a global leader in the design and production of infant and juvenile products. Unhappy with the non-availability of juvenile products for their infant son in 1949, Giuseppe Perego decided to design his own baby carriage. The aesthetics, functionality and the beautiful fabrics added by his wife caught the attention of parents in the Perego’s small Italian neighborhood. Soon they were inundated with requests by neighbors for carriages for their own children. Peg Perego was born.

It wasn’t long before word of the baby carriages spread, and the company introduced high chairs, strollers, and other juvenile products. With each new product, the family commitment to quality continued.

7. Compass (by Learning Curve)

Learning Curve offers developmental toys that engage children, and provide parents with peace of mind, knowing their children are being inspired and enlightened by safe and quality playthings. And our care, safety, feeding and soothing products provide you with solutions to day-to-day needs at mealtime, bedtime, at home and on-the-go..

We offer a wide range of age-specific brands to choose from, including: The First Years®, Lamaze®, John Deere Kids™, Thomas & Friends™ and Bob the Builder, to name a few. And all toys are thoroughly researched to nurture young minds in a wholesome, non-violent environment. Learning Curve products are designed under the direction of educators, child development authorities, parents like you and children like yours..

8. Recaro

The way from carriage to car seat is a symptomatic reflection of the development of the entire Motor Vehicle Industry. Technical expertise and an accurate feeling for the market and its trends have played an equally important role in Recaro's History. As a division of Keiper Recaro, Recaro has, over the years, gained a firmly established position in the motoring "landscape" as one of the best known and most successful brand names in the motor accessories business - WORLD WIDE. Recaro stands for more than "just" a seat - it represents a WHOLE philosophy!

Note: Descriptions about each of the car seat manufacturers are taken from their site.

Free Car Seats in Las Vegas

The Hispanic American Resource Team (HART) in conjunction with the East Central Family Services and Safe Kids hosted an even at the Cambridge Recreational Center in Las Vegas and gave away twenty five car seats for free to mainly Hispanic families in the Valley. The organizers also talked about car seat safety laws, penalties and statistics.

A certified car seat installer was also on hand to teach parents the proper way of installing  the car seats.  HART said it plans to offer the safety course on a regular basis.

Good to know that free car seats were given to deserving families in Las Vegas.

Car Seat Recycling in Morristown NJ

As we know by now, but may not be a widespread knowledge as of yet, car seats expire usually on the fifth or the sixth year after the manufacturing date. You can check my post about the expiration date of car seats for additional details.

With that in mind, through the effort of the Morristown Moms & Tots, a car seat recycling initiative was started in Morristown, New Jersey which was greeted with excitement by families in the area. It is said that it is probably the first car seat recycling effort of its kind in the state of New Jersey.

The event will officially kick off with an Infant/Child Car Seat Recycling Day
on May 9 at the Morristown Town Hall from 10am-2pm. Volunteers from the group Morristown Moms and Tots will be on hand to teach the public how to disassemble their car seats for proper recycling. Further information about the event, check it here.

It’s good to hear that organizations like Moms & Tots and towns like Morristown in New Jersey are making efforts to go green through recycle programs like this one. I agree that we should all be environment friendly for the sake of the future generation. Hats off to the proponents of this great idea, the volunteers and the enlightened town officials that all helped to make this event happen. This should be a model for every town to emulate. Thank you Jen Carcich, Linnea Hasegawa, Samantha Rothman, Councilwomen Harris-King, Feldman, and Deeb. Good job guys! :)

Win a Recaro ViVo Lite Booster Seat!

If you’d like to win a RECARO Vivo Lite Booster Seat then head over to astheygrowup.com. The site is currently giving away this booster seat from Recaro. Just follow the contest rule set out by the site owner.

Here’s some additional information regarding the contest as stated by the site owner.

1. One winner will be chosen!
2. I will be using a random number generator to select the winner.
3. Contest ends at 11:59pm CST on Sunday, May 3, 2009
If the prize is not claimed in 48 hours a new winner will be chosen.
4. Contest open to U.S. residents only.
5. The winner will be announced on my blog (and emailed)
Monday, May 4, 2009

The Recaro ViVo Lite Booster Seat

As your child grows – so do his or her demands. The RECARO High Back Booster Vivo lite not only looks good, it also offers excellent side impact protection for your child due to its extra large head and side wings and fully adjustable headrest. In addition, it is equipped with a convenient carrying handle and can be easily transported between vehicles. The comfortable padding, its adjustable backrest and integrated armrests add fun and pleasure to every journey.

Structurally the Vivo and the Vivo lite are the same seat, the only difference is the cover material. The Vivo comes with a microfiber cover or microfiber with soft mesh inserts and the Vivo lite in a breathable fabric / mesh inserts combination.

If you’re currently checking out a booster seat like the Recaro Vivo Lite, then head to the blog and join in the fun. As of now, it seems it has generated a lot of interest just by looking at the number of comments on the post. So, go there as you may just win this booster seat from Recaro. It’s your choice between the Cobalt and Blush options if you win. Good Luck!

Car Seat Check in Columbia, South Carolina

Car seat safety clinics are best at making sure that the car seat you have in your car is properly set up. Usually events like these takes place in the spring time and that is now. It’s time for you to go out and make sure that you know have it right. For first-time parents, I highly recommend attending one.

Last Saturday in Columbia, South Carolina, the Police Department’s Traffic Safety Unit held a car seat safety event at Finlay Park coinciding with the Kids Day Columbia Celebration.

Sergeant Michael Modica was quoted here 

"Not having a seat installed properly or having it facing wrongly can be critical in a serious collision as far as what's going to happen to our small people."

Good to know that the police in Columbia supports safety initiatives like this one. Thanks a lot! As a parent, I appreciate your effort to help out your community.