What: Pate Rehabilitation Joins Forces with Fort Worth Safe Communities Coalition to Educate students at M.L. Phillips Elementary on Bicycle Helmet Safety 

When: Wednesday, September 12, 2012, 7:30 a.m.

Where: M.L. Phillips Elementary School, 3020, Bigham, Fort Worth

Summary: Students at Fort Worth ISD’s M.L. Phillips Elementary School will receive free bike helmets on Wednesday, September 12, beginning at 7:30 a.m. Representatives from Pate Rehabilitation, along with Fort Worth Safe Communities Coalition, Fort Worth police and firefighters will be handing out the donated helmets to students who arrive on their bicycles, skateboards or scooters without any head protection.

Students wearing a helmet will be rewarded with a free ice cream coupon donated by Texas Dairy Queen, Blue Bell Ice Cream and Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Store. Those seen not wearing a helmet will be educated on the city’s bicycle helmet ordinance by participating Fort Worth police officers and firefighters. 

“As a member of the Fort Worth Safe Communities Coalition Child Injury Task Force, we are honored to work together in their efforts to increase helmet safety awareness and help prevent bicycle-related injuries this school year,” said Kent Hayden, president of Pate Rehabilitation. “Brain injuries can be a life altering event that no one wants to see anyone go through, especially children. While there has been great improvement in the treatment of brain injuries, prevention will always outweigh the cure.”

Based on data from the trauma registry at Fort Worth’s Cook Children’s Healthcare System, a total of 422 children were injured via bicycles, skateboard, roller-skates/rollerblade and scooters over the past five years. Of those, only 10.6 percent were wearing any type of protective gear during the incident.

This project is being coordinated by the Fort Worth Safe Communities Coalition, which is seeking Safe Communities designation for Fort Worth. Helmets are also being provided by Hard Hats for Little Heads at the M.L. Phillips and other sites.

-FWISD-

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