More than 1,000 Schools Nationwide will Participate in Safe Kids Sponsored Walk to School Day Events

WHO: Safe Kids Peoria Area, FedEx, Harrison Community Learning Center

WHAT: Safe Kids Peoria Area and FedEx volunteers, will walk with children that attend Harrison Community Learning Center to advocate for safer walking environments for children on October 5, International Walk to School Day.  Volunteers will walk to school with students to identify unsafe intersections, streets needing sidewalks, and dangerous areas where pedestrians have either been hit or nearly injured by a motor vehicle.

Nationwide, Safe Kids USA and participating schools will hold more than 1,000 International Walk to School Day activities as part of the Safe Kids Walk This Way pedestrian safety program.  For the twelfth year, Safe Kids coalitions are teaming up with hundreds of FedEx volunteers to teach children how to be safer pedestrians as they walk to and from school and raise awareness around specific pedestrian dangers or issues in their community

WHEN: 8:30 a.m. Press Conference Wednesday, October 5, 2011

WHERE: Harrison Community Learning Center, 2727 W. Krause Ave., Peoria 61605

WHY: According to the National Center for Health Statistics, road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death among children ages 3 to 14 worldwide.  While the number of child pedestrians injured in traffic crashes are decreasing in the United States, in 2009, more than 13,000 children, ages 14 and under went to the emergency room and 244 children died from pedestrian-related injuries.   Safe Kids Peoria Area activities are designed to help children walk safely all year round.

Safe Kids Peoria Area works to prevent accidental childhood injury, the leading cause of death and disability for children ages 1 to 14 under. Safe Kids Peoria Area is a member of Safe Kids USA, a global network of organizations dedicated to preventing accidental injury. Safe Kids Peoria Area is led by Children’s Hospital of Illinois and American Red Cross. For more information, visit www.safekids.org.