Lee County children participate in International Walk to School Day

Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties and other members of the Lee County Injury Prevention Coalition will join local school children and FedEx volunteers on Wednesday, Oct. 3 to raise awareness about pedestrian safety on International Walk to School Day. More than 250,000 children across the United States will participate in the annual event to learn about walking safely and to encourage the creation of safe walking environments.

“On International Walk to School Day, parents and caregivers both teach and model safe pedestrian behavior,” said Charlene Gardner, coordinator, Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties.  “It is one thing to tell students about pedestrian safety, but by walking with them on International Walk to School Day, we can show them proper behaviors and give them the tools to be safer pedestrians.”

This fall, Safe Kids released a report titled “Walking Safely, A Report to the Nation,” a 15-year trend report which examined child pedestrian injuries and deaths in the U.S. The report revealed that while walking safety has improved overall for children since 1995, there are still a staggering number of children hit by cars. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death among children ages 3 to 14.  More than 61 children are injured every day severely enough to seek medical attention and more than 500 children are killed every year.

“International Walk to School Day is a great opportunity for students to learn how to remain injury-free as they walk to and from school,” adds Gardner. “No child should be put in danger simply because they are walking to school or around their neighborhood.”

In 1999, Safe Kids Worldwide and program sponsor FedEx created the Safe Kids Walk This Way Program in the United States to teach safe behaviors to motorists and child pedestrians and create safer, more walkable communities. This year will mark the 13thanniversary of the program. Safe Kids coalitions across the country will work with over 1000 elementary schools to hold events for children on how to walk safely and recognize pedestrian dangers.

“Safety is one of our company’s core values, and we have been dedicated to improving child pedestrian safety through the Safe Kids Walk This Way program for over a decade,” said Rose Flenorl, Manager of FedEx Global Citizenship.  “Our team members work hand-in-hand with Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties to teach local children how to stay safer when they walk.  Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties does a wonderful job in our community and we look forward to supporting them as they make walking safer for everyone.”

About Safe Kids

Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties works to prevent unintentional childhood injury, the number one cause of death for children in the United States.  Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties is a member of Safe Kids Worldwide, a global network of organizations dedicated to preventing unintentional injury. Safe Kids Lee/Collier Counties was founded in 1996 and is led by The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida. For more information, visit www.safekidsleecollier.org.

About FedEx Corp.

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services.  With annual revenues of $43 billion, the company offers integrated business applications through operating companies competing collectively and managed collaboratively, under the respected FedEx brand.  Consistently ranked among the world's most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 300,000 team members to remain "absolutely, positively" focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities. For more information, visit news.fedex.com.

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