GILROY
– No parent wants to think about their child being abducted, but
if it happens, being prepared can be the key to saving a child’s
life.
GILROY – No parent wants to think about their child being abducted, but if it happens, being prepared can be the key to saving a child’s life.
That’s why some local businessmen and charities are teaming up to hold Gilroy’s first ever Children’s Safety Weekend Saturday and Sunday at the Hilton Garden Hotel on Monterey Road near U.S. 101.
Following the lead of other safety events hosted by cities around the country, the main goal of Gilroy’s Children’s Safety Weekend will be to photograph and fingerprint children – not for a database – but for 8-and-a half by 11-inch identification cards their parents can provide to law enforcement agencies in case of an emergency.
Local fire and police agents will also be on hand to demonstrate other child safety techniques, such as the correct way to secure a childseat in a car and how to fireproof and poison proof a home.
“Parents need to be educated on the things they don’t know, and this is a great environment where anyone can learn a lot,” said Phil Leekley, who works for local marketing company Dovepages.com, which helped organize this weekend’s event with the help of the KlassKids Foundation. “We need to protect our future.”
KlassKids, which will administer the ID badges, is a non-profit organization dedicated to children’s safety. It was founded by Mark Klass, who’s daughter Polly was kidnapped and murdered in 1993 in Pleasanton.
The event is free to the public, and jumping tents and other activities will be available for kids. Several raffles will also be held, with all proceeds going to Gilroy’s St. Joseph’s Family Center.
Leekley said he hopes to sign up at least 1,000 kids for identification cards, and draw 4,000 kids and parents to the two-day event, which will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day.
“Caretakers of people with Alzheimer’s or other adult disabilities will also find the I.D. cards useful,” Leekley said. “This is a precaution you don’t want to think about, but that is necessary and can make you very thankful you took the time to be prepared.”
Anybody with questions about the event can call Phil Leekley at 896-9163.
