Like rush hour on Fredrick, Claire Klammerer leads a train of traffic through the streets of Safety Town, sponsored by the St. Joseph Safety Council. The annual summer program teaches children five through seven years old traffic rules and safety, bicycle safety, and how to be safe around pets and other animals to help the kid have a safe summer
A local safety program is experiencing an uncharacteristic bout of insecurity.
Safety Town is a partnership between the St. Joseph Safety and Health Council and the St. Joseph School District. The program is in its 30th year, but instructor Kayte Langner said the number of Safety Town participants has dropped this summer and that the final two sessions in June may be canceled unless more parents sign up their children. The current session has 50 students.
“Generally (the numbers) stay about the same, but we are struggling this year,” she said.
Though the program includes much more than bicycle safety, Ms. Langner said past students and parents usually remember the miniature town where they got to ride their seat-belt equipped tricycles.
“They had such a good time on the bikes,” she said.
Current student Colton Rich, 6, is no different and easily lists riding bikes as his favorite activity.
“You need a helmet,” he explained before joining his classmates in the tricycle traffic.
Besides road safety, participants also learn how to protect themselves against everything from poison to animals to playgrounds. Ms. Langner said these components are included because parents don’t always have the time to explain safety tips to their children and sometimes don’t realize there is a need. She said it’s important for young children not to assume that their surroundings, both inside and out, are always safe.
“Kool-Aid and Windex look a lot alike,” Ms. Langner noted.
Captain Ed Row of the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department, who helps put on the program, said he is unsure why attendance is low this year. He said Safety Town satisfies a need in the community, and that the biggest issue covered is stranger safety.
Safety Town also is staying ahead of current security issues by including tips for careful Internet use, even though participants are only in the 5- to 7-year-old age range.
“It’s just sort of basic issues, for example, knowing the appropriate areas to get into, the inappropriate areas,” Mr. Row said.
Spots for this summer’s final Safety Town session are available until June 11. Each $25 session includes eight four-hour days. For more information, call 233-3330.