South Platte Sentinel Wednesday, June 19, 2013 Page 9

A Labor Of Love

By Kerri Long

Opinion

Children should never die from being 'forgotten'

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In 2008, Oprah had a guest on her show whom I have thought about regularly since. It was Brenda Slaby, a mother of two young daughters. On Aug. 23, 2007, Brenda loaded her younger daughter in her car at 6 a.m. and headed to a school where she was an administrator. Her husband normally took Cecilia, who was 2 at the time, to her daycare, but he asked Brenda to do it because he had a dentist appointment that morning. Being out of her normal routine, and a busy day ahead of her as the first day back at school for teachers, Brenda made a horrible mistake. Forgetting that Cecilia was asleep in the back seat, rather than dropping her off at the babysitter, she went straight to her school and worked all day, never once realizing what she had done. In fact, she didn’t know it until a co-worker saw her dead child in the car at 4 p.m. The theme of that Oprah show was “overwhelmed mothers,” and other mothers recalled their stories of feeling overwhelmed and close-calls that happened with their children as a result. It was a highly watched and discussed, controversial show (as many of Oprah’s shows were). In fact, if you do a google search that begins with “Oprah mom who ...” the

second highest searched item that pops up is “Oprah mom who left baby in car,” Brenda Slaby. I was horrified that a mother could forget her own child in a car for 10 hours, and not even once realize the mistake she made. However, at the same time, I felt so sad for Brenda Slaby’s loss, and for the guilt and regret she will live with for the rest of her life. I don’t think she was negligent or careless; she was just busy. I am sad for baby Cecilia, who died because her mom was too busy with her career aspirations that she forgot about her. However, the reason this story resonated with me so much is that I feel something like this could happen to me or any of my mommy friends. I am not perfect. None of us are. My kids essentially are with me 24/7, so I’m pretty sure I would realize quickly if I left one of them somewhere. I don’t dare take my eyes off of them for too long, but there have been close calls that really opened my eyes and made me realize I’m not immune to a lot of the things that happen to children while their moms, dads or caregivers are distracted, tired, or just make a bad decision.

During spring break, my friend - a mother of three - and I took our kids to the children’s museum. Watching a 5-1/2 year old and a 2 year old at the same time was pretty hectic. Toward the end of our playtime there, while I was pretty tired, I was holding Brooks as Quincy and I headed to the art area to retrieve her painting, which was hanging to dry. At least I thought Q was heading there with me. Turns out she had another idea. She instead went to check out the contraptions that blasted handkerchiefs. I was about 99% sure Q was nearby, but that 1% that thought someone could have taken my beautiful little girl scared me to death. I’m not immune. What’s even scarier than this Brenda Slaby story is that lots of

babies and children have died from being left in hot cars in the nearly six years since baby Cecilia died. I would think this would be a wakeup call, but apparently it was not. I searched for “baby dies from being left in a car,” and found all sorts of stories that were almost identical to Brenda’s, from California to Minnesota and lots of places in between. They all were incidents in which tired, busy or overwhelmed parents simply forgot to take their kid to a babysitter, or into the house after being out, and they were left to die in hot cars. Each year, about 37 babies and toddlers die when they are accidentally left strapped in car safety seats or become trapped in vehicles that rapidly heat up. Since 1998, there have been at least 570 documented cases of heatstroke deaths of children in vehicles. I found some safety tips online, which parents and caregivers may find useful: • Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle. • If you see a child unattended in a hot vehicle, call 911. • Be sure all occupants leave

the vehicle when unloading. Don’t overlook sleeping babies. • Always lock your car and ensure children do not have access to keys or remote entry devices. If a child is missing, always check a pool first, then the car, including the trunk. • Keep a stuffed animal in the car seat and when the child is in the seat, place the stuffed animal in the front seat with the driver. Or, place your purse or briefcase in the back seat so that you will have to look in the back to retrieve it, thereby seeing your child. • Make “look before you leave” a routine whenever you get out of the car. I see Walmart has a sign on its entrance that reminds shoppers to be sure that they have all their children out of the car before they go in the store. • Have a plan that your childcare provider will call you if your child does not show up to daycare. (Kerri Long is a writer and stay-at-home mom. She and her husband, Andy, have a pre-school-aged daughter, Quincy, and toddler boy, Brooks. To reach her, please email labor.of.love.column@gmail.com )

Children learn from a very early age that money is what makes the world go round. They often struggle to understand that for most families, there is not an unlimited supply. Studies show that children are capable of comprehending money management from a very early age. That is why Northeastern Junior College’s Kids College is offering a “Money $marts” class for students this summer. Two sessions of the class are being held. One for children entering grades 1-4 and a second session for older children in grades 5-8. The classes will both be

held on Mon., July 1. The younger children will be taught from 8 to 11 a.m. and the older children will participate in an afternoon session from 1 to 4 p.m. Instructor for these Smart Money classes will be Judy Snedeker, Director of Programs for the Rural Young Americans Center for Financial Education. Learners will get a smart start on their financial future. This dynamic

class will provide children with personal finance tools to help them today and in the future. They’ll learn how to budget, save, and spend wisely plus understand the keys to personal banking. Students will discuss personal finance and discover ways to give, save and spend. Cost is $25 per student and there is a June 26 registration deadline. Call 521-6900 to enroll.

Kids College includes 'Money Smarts' class