WASHINGTON, Oct. 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Government
representatives, safety advocates and other community organizers
joined Safe Kids and FedEx volunteers today at schools around the
world on International Walk to School Day to educate kids
about how to walk to school safely and advocate for safer walking
environments for children. More than 170,000 children in 301 cities
around the world participated in the annual event to raise
awareness, prevent injuries and save lives.
A signature event at Grahamwood Elementary School in
Memphis, Tennessee was a return to
the site of the first Safe Kids Walk This Way school event and
marked the 20th anniversary between Safe Kids Worldwide
and program sponsor FedEx.
"Every day, 44 children are hit by a car in the United States and countless more are
injured around the world," said Torine
Creppy, president of Safe Kids Worldwide. "Working with
FedEx for the last two decades has allowed us to address these
preventable tragedies and make a meaningful impact in the lives of
children and families around the world. In all that time, FedEx has
been unwavering in its support of injury prevention and has
continually gone the extra mile to make sure we're doing all we can
to keep kids safe."
Since its inception in 2000, the Safe Kids Walk This Way program
has grown into one of the most comprehensive child pedestrian
safety programs in the world, addressing pedestrian safety through
research, environmental safety improvements to school zones, and
education and awareness campaigns, such as International Walk to
School Day. To date, more than 20,000 FedEx volunteers have helped
Safe Kids reach more than 17 million children in more than 14,000
schools around the world.
"What began as a relatively small pilot program has now reached
millions of children around the world," said Tim Wertner, Senior Vice President for FedEx
Express. "We are so appreciative of our relationship with Safe Kids
and how our values are so well aligned around safety. The only
acceptable number of childhood unintentional road crash deaths is
zero. We are eager and excited to continue our work with Safe Kids
until we reach this goal."
About Safe Kids Worldwide
Safe Kids Worldwide is a
nonprofit organization working to protect kids on the road, at home
and at play. Preventable injuries are the number one cause of death
for children in the United States.
Safe Kids works with an extensive network of more than 400
coalitions in the U.S. and with partners in more than 30 countries
to reduce traffic injuries, drownings, falls, burns, poisonings and
more. Join our effort at safekids.org.
About FedEx
FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers
and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation,
e-commerce and business services. With annual revenues of
$70 billion, the company offers
integrated business solutions 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 450,000 team
members to remain focused on safety, the highest ethical and
professional standards and the needs of their customers and
communities. To learn more about how FedEx connects people and
possibilities around the world, please visit about.fedex.com.
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SOURCE Safe Kids Worldwide