The Times Advocate, 2005-09-07, Page 1010
Exeter Times–Advocate
Wednesday,September 7, 2005
Community Living - South Huron Board President Rick Hundey, right, accepts a
cheque in the amount of $15,000 from Golf Committee Chairperson, Roger
Wallis, following the May 25 golf tournament held at Oakwood Inn Golf and Spa,
Grand Bend. (photo/submitted)
Booster seats now mandatory
HURON — Booster seats
are now mandatory for
children too big for toddler
seats and too small to be
protected by seatbelts.
On Sept. 1, new regula-
tions came into effect
regarding the use of
booster seats under the
Highway Traffic Act.
Booster seats are now
mandatory to use with
children being transported
in vehicles by all care-
givers such as parents,
grandparents and babysit-
ters. Police officers have
begun enforcing the new
booster seat law, passed
by the Ontario govern-
ment in December 2004.
The law requires booster
seats be used in vehicles
for pre-school and school -
aged children weighing
between 40-80 pounds
(18-36 kg) or a standing
height of less than four
feet nine inches (145 cm)
or a maximum of eight
years of age.
A child must be secured
in a booster seat using a
lap/shoulder seatbelt
assembly, which protects
the pelvis and upper body.
To help parents and
caregivers determine the
best car restraint to use
for their child, a booster
seat fitting clinic will be
held at the Wal-Mart in
Goderich Thursday night
from 6 - 8 p.m.
Parents are encouraged
to have their children
weighed and measured as
well as get information
about the new booster
seat regulation. The event
also kicks off an aware-
ness campaign in south
and central west Ontario
by the Huron County
Health Unit and regional
partners in car seat safety.
The campaign slogan is
"I'm no crash test dummy.
I always use my booster
seat!" Stickers and book-
marks will be distributed
through child care cen-
tres, schools and Early
Years Centres.
According to Safe Kids
Canada, every year more
than 35 Canadian children
between four and nine are
killed in car crashes and
another 360 are seriously
injured.
Many of these deaths
and injuries could be pre-
vented by correctly using
a booster seat in the back
seat of the vehicle.
Booster seats raise a
child so the seatbelt fits
properly over his or her
body, avoiding soft fleshy
areas such as the neck
and abdomen and cross-
ing over the hip bones and
chest bones, offering more
protection. Also, if a child
is not in a booster seat and
his or her thighs are
shorter than the vehicle
seat cushion, the child is
more likely to jack-knife
forward over the lap belt.
Booster seats are effec-
tive in protecting young
children and reduce the
odds of serious injury by
75 per cent compared to
seatbelts alone. These
injuries could include
spinal cord injuries, which
can leave a child at risk of
permanent disabilities and
crushing or rupturing
internal organs such as
the liver, kidneys, bladder,
spleen or small intestine.
Seatbelts were designed to
fit adults, not young chil-
dren. Using a booster seat
will give children the max-
imum protection in the
event of a crash and will
reduce the likelihood of
being ejected in a vehicle
rollover.
In addition to the new
regulations under the
Highway Traffic Act, the
Infant and Toddler Safety
Association also recom-
mends children use boost-
er seats until they have a
sitting height up to 29
inches (74 cm) and their
knees can bend comfort-
ably over the edge of the
vehicle seat.
Until a child reaches this
sitting height from the
base of the tail bone to the
top of the head, a vehicle's
seatbelt will not fit him or
her properly and may
increase his or her risk of
serious injury.
For more information
about booster seats and
the law, visit the Ministry
of Transportation's web-
site at www.mto.gov.on.ca.
If you have further ques-
tions or if buying a booster
seat is a financial hard-
ship, call the Car Seat
HelpLine at the Huron
County Health Unit at 482-
3416, ext. 2508, or 1-877-
837-6143.
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United Way kicks off campaign
By Nina Van Lieshout
TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF
HURON COUNTY – This
year's goal for the Huron
County United Way is
$230,000, $30,000 more
than last year.
In South Huron, the
goal is, $50,000, a
$10,000 increase over
2004.
Two people who will do
a substantial part in mak-
ing sure this goal suc-
ceeds are Mike and
Michelle Hansen, the new
chairpersons for the
South Huron area of the
United Way.
They are also the own-
ers of Hansen's
Independent Grocer on
Thames Road in Exeter.
Kimberly Payne, execu-
tive director of the Huron
County United Way says,
"we are thrilled to have
them aboard." When
choosing people to chair
an area for the United
Way they must have a
good profile in their com-
munity, have an interest
in family, and live in the
community.
"We felt the Hansen's
definitely had all of this,"
says Payne.
Michelle and Mike are
very community orientat-
ed, keeping busy with
several different organi-
zations in the area. Both
of them make a large
impact on the Exeter
community.
Mike is on the board of
directors at South Huron
Hospital and Michelle vol-
unteers for the Red Cross
Disaster Services in the
area.
Although it is unknown
at this point exactly what
different events will take
place to help reach the
goal for the United Way,
there are a few planned,
with many ideas floating
around.
"Mike is an out -of -the
box thinker," says Payne.
"We're all very excited
about some of the ideas."
E
CO
Michelle and Mike Hansen are the new chairpersons
for the South Huron chapter of the United Way.
(photo/Nina Van Lieshout)
One thing you can defi-
nitely count on is that the
whole community can
participate in the events.
Both the Huron County
United Way and the
r
Hansens are open to any
assistance, ideas, or par-
ticipation in any way.
The United Way wraps
up their campaign on
Dec. 15.
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