AWARDS, ENDORCEMENTS & RECOGNITION

We initiated legislation making parental abduction a felony!

Our program and staff have appeared on numerous television and radio programs.

Local and national awards:

•  Pennsylvania Governor’s Award  Community Crime Prevention
•  Crime Prevention Association of Pennsylvania Member of the Year
•  Federal Bureau of Investigation Director’s Community Leadership Award
•  Certified by Independent Charities of America
•  Accredited by Better Business Bureau meeting all 14 standards for Charitable  Accountability

Endorsements:

“The S.T.A.R. program is an innovative and unique curriculum designed to address personal and community safety issues at the grade school level in an effort to teach good decision-making skills early in a child’s development.  Such skills will enhance the safety of our children, schools and communities and hopefully lead to a lifetime of responsible decisions.”

Stephen A. Zappala, Jr.

District Attorney of Allegheny County

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

“It’s a program that the F.B.I. and innumerable partnering agencies work with when going into the schools to discuss aspects of child safety.”

Lillie Leonardi

Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pennsylvania

“Being in law enforcement for over 35 years and a staunch advocate of crime prevention, I must say that the "Charlie Check-First" initiative is one of the most sensible, exciting, and outstanding programs in which I have participated.  It gives young children the necessary knowledge, skills and ability to protect themselves in a variety of situations.  I am very impressed with the message and thought provoking insight that is gleaned, not only by students, but by teachers, parents, and law enforcement officers that have experienced the training."

Bill Coe, former law Enforcement Coordination Manager

United States Attorney's Office, Western Pennsylvania

“A refreshing and unique program helping children understand and practice personal safety.  It’s elegantly simple, yet addresses virtually all facets of safety from a child's perspective.  A simplistic, but understandable approach in educating our children, enhancing their self-esteem and most important, empowering!

Jim Howell, former Executive Director

International Society of Crime Prevention Practitioners

"The Charlie Check First Program was offered to the entire School Resource Unit of the Tucson Police Department in August 2006.  The feedback was extremely positive during the training, and several of the officers have already presented classes at their elementary schools.  The youth quickly became engaged in the training and showed enthusiasm throughout the class.  The training materials are very easy to adapt to individual needs; the props, handouts, and posters create the opportunity for interaction and visual learning.  Kudos to Safety Kids for developing such a usable and helpful program!"

Sgt. Charlotte Bilang

Tucson Police Department, Arizona

“The Foundation…has utilized the Be A Safety Kid curriculum as a resource for Arizona school resource officers.  The curriculum was extremely well received and has been proven useful for the officers.  The evaluations were overwhelmingly positive and the feedback we received from the attendees was excellent.  The feedback can be directly attributed to the quality of the curriculum and level of expertise provided.

“The full day training was presented in a concise, efficient manner. We were highly satisfied with the Safety Kids, Inc. concept and presentation…  We recommend her presentation on personal safety for children.”

Captain David Taylor

Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Colorado

“The Safety Kids program makes sense.  The ISCPP is using this model to train Crime Prevention Practitioners around the world in child safety…The message/theme of Charlie Check-First and his comrades is timeless…School Resource Officers would benefit from exposure to this program…and should consider incorporating it into their curriculums.”

Robbie Burns, ISCPP

Tukwila Police Department, Washington

“For the first time in 10 years all of the safety messages (from SafetyTown) flowed with the help of Charlie... I do have one complaint though.  It came from one of the dads.  He wants to know how to get the Charlie Check-First song out of his head.  His daughter has been singing it constantly since she learned it!”

Jeff C. Smith

Germantown Police Department, Wisconsin

“This is a tremendous program!  As a DARE instructor I can tell when the kids are truly grasping a concept, and with Charlie Check-First the goals of personal safety education are definitely achieved.”

Chief Tracy Lindo

Lower Burrell Police, Pennsylvania

“Our students have truly embraced the Charlie Check-First program.”

Dr. Mariellen Kerr

Chartiers Valley Primary School, Pennsylvania