News

Prevention 1^st is creating a Leadership Development program for the Girl Scouts of Western New York (GSWNY) focusing on fire safety and prevention. Senior Girl Scouts will develop and practice their fire safety presentations, then train Daisy and/or Brownie troops. The trainings will count toward the Senior Girl Scouts’ leadership awards, and toward the younger Girl Scouts’ BIC play safe! be safe!® Fire Safety Education Patch.

“GSWNY believes the Leaders in Prevention program will help retain Senior Girl Scouts, build relationships between the younger and older girls, and motivate the junior Girl Scouts to stay with scouting beyond the elementary grades,” said Scarlett Webb, Girl Experience Specialist at GSWNY.

Prevention 1^st will host two leadership development training sessions, one in Monroe County sponsored by the John F. Wegman Fund of the Rochester Area Community Foundation, and one in Erie County sponsored by Prevention 1^st. At these the Senior Girl Scouts will learn about: the fire risk in young children, approaches to teaching young children, presentation skills to keep their audience engaged and learning, and resources to assist in teaching. They will develop a presentation and practice it in front of the group, then work with GSWNY to schedule presentations for Daisy and/or Brownie troops to ultimately train 900 junior Girl Scouts.

In Prevention 1^st’s home state of New York, some counties will allow the sale of certain types of fireworks during the month of June and through the holiday weekend. A new state law allows “sparkling devices”—sparklers and other small ground fireworks­—to be sold and used in counties that approved a local version of the law.

Our take on this? Even when and where they’re legal, we still have plenty of reasons to leave fireworks to the pros. That includes sparklers, which burn hot enough to cause third degree burns and account for a quarter of emergency room fireworks injuries, according to the National Fire Protection Association.

By the way, it’s still illegal to set off fireworks in counties that didn’t approve the new law even if you bought them in a county that allows fireworks. And no one under the age of 18 is allowed to handle even legal fireworks—including sparklers and other sparking devices—in the state of New York.

Prevention 1st trainers Bob Crandall & Julia Engstrom introduced the Safe at Home program at the 45th Annual Fire & Life Safety Educators’ Conference. More than a hundred firefighters and public educators from throughout the Northeast and Canada attended this conference held in Montour Falls by the NYS Association of Fire Chiefs and the NYS Office of Fire Prevention and Control.

Learn more about Safe at Home at www.safeathometraining.org

When elder law attorney Andrew Meier learned about the Stay Safe at Home injury prevention training available from Prevention 1^st, he realized it was perfect for his older clients.

“My job is to protect people’s assets, and that usually starts when people are already in a nursing home,” said Meier. “But the best way to protect your assets is by staying out of a nursing home, by avoiding injury and living longer safely in your own home.”

This spring Webster Schubel & Meier, LLP sponsored and underwrote two free Stay Safe at Home workshops in Medina and Lockport, NY. The highly interactive trainings, taught by Prevention 1^st trainer Bob Crandall, covered fall prevention, fire safety, emergency preparedness and household hazards.

A 30-year veteran of the Rochester Fire Department, Crandall had attendees draw “Pick-a-Risk” cards describing beliefs or behaviors that can increase their risk of fire and injury. The group discussed whether they had ever taken that risk, then looked at statistics on what could have happened because that behavior.

“As a fire investigator I heard from a lot of people about what led up to the fire. I created the Pick-a-Risk cards based on the stories I heard most often,” said Crandall. “These are very typical risks, like thinking that once you put up a smoke alarm you don’t have to worry about fire. Having a working smoke alarm cuts your risk of dying in a fire by 50%. But you don’t get to that  50% if you don’t check the alarm, a minimum of twice a year and preferably monthly, to make sure it is working. Looking at the data helps wake us up to the risks we’re taking and change that behavior.”

Meier feels that injury prevention is often missing from the discussion of asset protection. “Falls in particular can lead to long-term disability and precipitate fatalities. Attorneys are often on the front lines when these events occur, so injury prevention is something we should discuss with our clients.”

90% of older adults intend to live in their current home for the next 5-10 years. But one in three older adults falls each year ,and falls are the #1 cause of fatal injury for people 65 years and older. And older adults are two times more likely to die in a home fire than the rest of the U.S.

Meier plans to do more Stay Safe at Home trainings later this summer:  “It’s a great service we can provide for our clients just as Prevention 1^st provides a great service to the community.”

Stay Safe at Home injury prevention training for older adults is available as a group seminar or as an in-home safety assessment.

Contact Jen Ralph, Program Coordinator at (585) 383-6543  or jenralph@communityhealthstrategies.com

Mark your calendar and start putting together your foursome! The Jane & Larry Glazer Memorial Golf Tournament to benefit Prevention 1st will be held on Monday, Sept. 17 at Midvale Country Club.

Download the flyer and registration form here.

Tee sponsorships and flag sponsorships are available. Non-golfers are very welcome to join us for dinner and silent auction following the tournament.

The winners of this year’s Prevention 1st Fire Safety Poster Contest got the word out about important steps to take when the smoke alarm sounds: Get out right away, don’t go back inside for anything, and call 9-1-1 after you’re outside.

First-place winners:

• K-2nd Grade:  Abby Flagg, in Mrs. Erikson’s 2nd grade class at Honeoye Falls Manor School
• 3rd-4th Grade: Finley Neenan, Emilia Bennett, Jenna Lawrence, and Sarah Smith, 4th graders in the classrooms of Mrs. Roberts, Miss Balseca and Mrs. George at Honeoye Falls Manor School, teamed up to produce their winning poster
• 5th-6th Grade:  Cailee Pickett, in the 5th grade and taught by Mrs. Lombardo, Mrs. Boccardoat and art teacher Amy Graham at Abelard Reynolds School No. 42.

Honorable mentions went to 3 students at Abelard Reynolds School #42–Julianna Perez in Mrs. Bell’s 6th grade class, William Cody in Mr. Bissell’s 5th grade class, and Darius Balkum in Mrs. Taylor’s 4th grade class–and to Meaghan O’Brien in Mrs. Fleming’s 2nd grade class at Honeoye Falls Manor School.

In addition, two poster artists won a random drawing for a ride to school on a fire truck: Alli Falzoi in Mr. Wilson’s 3rd grade class at Honeoye Falls Manor School, and Mayeli Rivera in Mrs. Vanegas’ 3rd grade class at Pinnacle School No. 35.

The winners and honorable mentions will be on display at the Children’s Center in the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County, at 115 South Avenue. Additional exhibits will be at: Monroe County Office Building; Rochester City Hall; Canandaigua National Bank; Marketplace Mall; The Mall at Greece Ridge; Greater Rochester International Airport; Rochester Museum and Science Center

Our thanks to this year’s poster judges:  State Senator Joe Robach, Rochester City Schools Commissioner Beatriz Lebron, Rochester Fire Marshal Christine Schryver, Monroe County Fire Coordinator Steve Schalabba and the Memorial Art Gallery’s Sidney Greaves.

Click here for a pdf of our current monthly newsletter: Prevention1st_2018_03