Yesterday, I met with my accountant, Cindy Manning. I expected to discuss taxes and believe me, I don’t don’t mind outsourcing that activity! As Cindy and I normally do, we had some carefree conversation and catching up to do. I only see her once a year. As we chatted, she began to tell me about a service project that her office had taken on.

Stop, Where’s the Baby?

It’s called, Stop! Where’s the Baby?

It was a service project and a cause that her small office decided to tackle head on. Here’s a description of the cause.

Stop! Where’s the Baby? has the goal of ensuring the safety of your child.

Here is a link to facts on Hyperthermia Deaths of Children in Vehicles There were 28 children deaths in 2012 and 33 in 2011. The link listed earlier has the motto, Beat the Heat, Check the Backseat! There’s some good information at that link. Check it out!

Every year children die needlessly when left inside a hot car. Research has shown that heat is far more dangerous to a small child than to an adult. A young child’s core body temperature can rise 3-5 times faster than an adult’s, quickly causing permanent injury and even death.

This tragedy doesn’t happen because people don’t care about the child in their care. Many people are unaware how quickly the temperature inside a vehicle will rise even with the window rolled down. They are unaware of the dangerous effects of the rising heat.

Sometimes parents are operating on “auto-pilot”. Babies and children tend to fall asleep very quickly in a moving car. A busy distracted adult might forget the quiet child in the back seat.

We all think it could never happen to us, but why take that chance? It does happen to people every year, and it’s time to end this tragedy for good.

Our vision is to make Stop! Where’s the Baby? a universal symbol, so that when people see this symbol hanging from a rear-view mirror, it will become a natural response to glance in the back seat and check for a forgotten child.

Together, we can help ensure that no child ever dies in this tragic way again.

Their efforts currently include rear-view mirror placards, bumper stickers, and key chain reminders.

The key chain is a reminder to yourself, the bumper sticker alerts everyone else, and the rear-view mirror placard does double duty, reminding you and alerting others that a child rides in the vehicle.

What a worthy undertaking! I often say, “It’s better to light one candle than curse the darkness”. The employees at Manning & Associates are making a difference on this important issue and lighting one bright candle! Good job and good leadership!

Here is a link to contact information from these employees. Contact Cindy or Jamie. Jamie is taking the lead on this project. Her email is jamey@manningassoc.com if you want to congratulate her or get involved. StopWheresTheBaby.com is coming soon. Feel free to offer suggestions in the comments.