Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician Kathy Wall
In 2018, 636 American children died in car crashes and 33% of that number were not restrained by a seat belt or car seat.
Safe Kids Palm Beach County Program Director Kathy Wall is working to prevent tragedies like this through education and easily accessible hands-on assistance.
“There is a lot of information out there on the best ways to keep our kids safe and it can get a little overwhelming. Especially for a first-time parent,” said Kathy. “We are happy to work with families, teach them best practices and help keep all of our kids safe.”
Four years ago, Kathy received her certification as a Child Passenger Safety Technician, enabling her to properly install car seats and ensure that children are safely secured in them.
Child Passenger Safety Training is a four-day course culminating in a car seat event which allows techs to use their newly gained skills.
“Experienced Lead Instructors certified that I had the knowledge, skills and abilities to teach child passenger safety and this qualifies me to educate and train new CPS Technicians,” said Kathy.
All of Community Partners of South Florida’s Safe Kids staff are certified technicians and in 2021, our program distributed and installed 650 car seats to families across Palm Beach County. The program also has 30 county-wide volunteers who assist with installation.
In addition to car seat safety, Kathy and her Safe Kids team also educate the public about heatstroke and the dangers of hot cars as well how to “Spot The Tot” when backing out of driveways.
“We do so much more than just child passenger safety. Everything from drowning prevention, which is vital in South Florida, to home safety, pedestrian safety and bicycle safety,” said Kathy. “We are committed to raising public awareness of preventable injuries, supporting public policy on child safety, distributing safety materials to families in need and providing safety education to anyone who cares for children.”
Children's Services Council of Palm Beach County funding provides car seats for any family that is a part of the Healthy Beginnings Programs, but for families who not a part of the Health Beginnings Program, Safe Kids Palm Beach County asks for a minimal donation of $40 to help offset the cost of the car seat.
If you would like to help alleviate the cost of a car seat for a Palm Beach County family, you can make a donation directly to Safe Kids by clicking here: https://www.cp-cto.org/Safe-Kids.
Interested in becoming a car seat tech? Please contact Safe Kids Palm Beach County Program Director Kathy Wall at KWall@cp-cto.org.
Together, we can help save lives and Palm Beach County a safer place for all of us.
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