HOUSTON –
Children will likely die this summer for reasons that are completely preventable.
“At Texas Children’s, we’re a level one trauma center,” said Kristin Beckworth, manager of injury prevention at Texas Children’s Hospital. “We have a term. We call it trauma season. It’s kind of May through August when we see a spike in injuries and that’s really a contributing factor is that our kids are out of school and there’s a lot more free time without supervision.”
The YMCA of Greater Houston provides swim lessons all year long, but the effort is even more focused during summer months. “We have those traditional swim lesson programs,” Rosemary Lengefeld, district executive director for aquatics for the YMCA, said. “But we also have our outreach programs that are at no cost to those in the community so those include our 'Go for Green' for any child that doesn’t pass the swim test, (they) get free swim lessons to help them meet that goal.”
Al Bennett is community liaison for the Houston Fire Department and says the key is to be ready. “Be prepared in case this does happen to you. By taking the CPR, by teaching your kids how to swim, by taking advantage of some of the free programs that are out there in the community.”
ALSO
The Fisher House Foundation has opened a third Fisher House in Houston at the DeBakey VA Medical Center.
It is the 72nd such house in the world and is unique in how it provides for the families of injured active military or veterans. Frank Kelley is the manager of all three Houston facilities.
“The main criteria is that the veteran or active duty military person needs to be actually in the hospital themselves, and then their family members can stay in the Fisher House for an indefinite period of time,” Kelley said. “If the person is in the hospital, we take care of the family.”
Bob Scruggs is a board member of the Fisher House Friends of Houston and says their goal is to add quality to the lives of the families during their stay, and is asking Houston restaurants to make food commitments.
“We want to provide a whole lot more meals, and we know from other Fisher Houses that have had non-profits in operation for much longer than we have that that’s a doable thing,” Scruggs said.
Watch Houston Newsmakers with Khambrel Marshall, Sunday at 10 a.m. right after Meet the Press on KPRC Channel 2.
• Frank Kelley, manager, Fisher House Houston, 713-794-8095 frank.kelley@va.gov www.fisherhouse.org
• Bob Scruggs, board member, Fisher House Friends of Houston, 713-384-1239, Bob@fisherhousefriendsofHouston.org www.fisherhousefriendsofhouston.org
• Kristin Beckworth, injury prevention manager, Texas Children’s Hospital, 832-824-1000 www.texaschildrens.org/departments/injury-prevention
• Al Bennett, community liaison, Houston Fire Department, 832-394-6700, http://houstontx.gov/fire/community_interaction/index.html
• Rosemary Lengefeld, district executive director, aquatics, YMCA of Greater Houston, 713-659-5566 RosemaryM@ymcahouston.org www.ymcahouston.org