BURRILLVILLE – September is child passenger safety awareness month and this year’s National Child Passenger Safety Week is Sunday, Sept., 17, through the Sunday, Sept. 24.
This year’s focus week is also the initial push for the new Buckleupallofus Cops & Rodders Child Passenger Safety campaign, first launched at the Burrillville Police Department here in northern Rhode Island, and launched shortly afterwards with the Putnam, Conn. Police Department. Police departments are teaming up with area hot rodders, classic car and truck owners and muscle car enthusiasts in partnership with the Buckleupallofus Child Passenger Safety Campaign here in Rhode Island, Connecticut, New England and states across the USA in an effort to remind kids and families about the importance of wearing seatbelts while properly restraining kids in car seats, booster seats and seatbelts in the vehicle backseat. A summer-long radio campaign that began on Memorial Day weekend is still ongoing until the weekend of September 30. Four months of Buckleupallofus and The Safe And The Serious campaign radio promos have been airing on WOON’s, “Saturday Block Party,” radio show every Saturday from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m., with an hourly message for kids to boost up and buckle up for safety, and also reminding drivers not to text and drive. Cruisin’ Bruce Palmer is the very popular host DJ, and delivers the strong campaign safety messages with two pre-recorded and one live-on-the-air message every week during the three hour Saturday radio broadcasts, while playing everyone’s favorite oldies and classic rock requests and dedications to radio listeners here in Rhode Island, New England and nationwide via the internet. The Buckleupallofus child passenger safety messages and The Safe And The Serious, “Drive Now…Text Later” messages and campaign efforts are brought to everyone listening in partnership with Motorhead Magazine and Daigle Law Offices, specializing in personal injury law.
This new Buckleupallofus Cops & Rodders Child Passenger Safety campaign will become an annual campaign in any participating city, town and community outreach effort at car shows and cruise nights starting in the spring of 2024, with a recognized focus event weekend with police departments nationwide during the month of September, with dates to be announced in the month of March next year. Police officers and hot rodders will partner together to help promote Buckleupallofus child passenger safety and The Safe And The Serious teenager and young adult traffic safety campaigns in their own cities, towns and communities across the USA. Buckleupallofus child passenger safety coloring posters and fridge magnets will be distributed and handed out to kids and families to take home as a creative vehicle to have the messages displayed on family refrigerators for long periods of time in an effort to keep families and friends safer on America streets and roadways. Display banners will also be displayed at police departments, fire departments, grade schools, middle and high schools, libraries and community centers, reminding everyone to buckle up for safety.
Two of these traffic safety banners are now on display at the Burrillville Police Department reminding everyone to “Buckle Up.” Car show and cruise night hosts locations will also be displaying these full color, vibrant banners as a safety reminder for everyone attending these popular automotive outdoor and indoor events nationwide beginning in 2024.
Color this week’s Buckleupallofus Cops & Rodders child passenger safety campaign coloring cartoon while discussing buckle up safety with your children. It could save a child’s life. Remember to always, “Boost Up!, Buckle Up!, Kids!”
Jim Weicherding is a Burrillville resident, and the founder and creator of an award-winning traffic safety effort Seasons of Safety. Weicherding contributes kids’ coloring cartoons, which can be printed and used to help parents discuss safety issues with their children. He has a long list of police officers and firefighters in his family and has worked with law enforcement and firefighters in a creative public safety capacity for more than two decades.