May 30--LAURINBURG -- Laurinburg Fire Chief Randy Gibson was recently honored with a statewide safety award by Safe Kids North Carolina, an agency that works to prevent accidental injuries to children.
Gibson was named Outstanding Member of the Year at a statewide meeting this week. Gibson is a member of Safe Kids Mid-Carolinas, a division of the agency that serves Scotland, Richmond, Moore, Montgomery and Hoke counties. The coalition celebrated with a cookout.
"This puts us right in the running with some of the larger coalitions in the state," said Amy Hamilton Forester, an employee of FirstHealth of the Carolinas and the coordinator for Safe Kids Mid-Carolinas. "There's probably about 10 awards in all, so to just get one in the state for injury prevention work is great. It shows that our coalition, even in rural areas, can be just as powerful as some of the larger counties."
The coalition holds car seat checkpoints, programs on bike and pedestrian safety and also helps to organize the county's Medicine Drop. The agency's focus is on those aged 19 and younger.
Gibson says his department has made the most strides in the child passenger safety program, with the North Laurinburg Fire Station becoming a permanent checking station -- where parents can come learn about their car seat without penalty of a ticket.
"In the past few years we've only had one or two certified (car seat) technicians, now we have eight. That's going to give us more accessibility and more opportunities for outreach," he said.
"Randy has done a lot. It's not everyday that you will find somebody that is in a top leadership position who still can work in the field in these projects," Forester said. "He gets involved in safety issues that aren't fire related. He could say 'No, we're the fire department,' but he doesn't do that."
Forester said the coalition's focus in the coming months will be aimed at preventing parents and caregivers from leaving children in parked cars that can quickly reach dangerous temperatures.
Abbi Overfelt can be reached at 910-276-2311, ext. 12. Follow her on Twitter @aoinscotco.
Copyright 2014 - The Laurinburg Exchange, N.C.
