On October 11, 2005 from 10am to 12:30pm, the Cleveland Central Weed & Seed program presented the Health & Safety Fair at Giddings Elementary School, 2250 East 71st Street (between Cedar and Central Avenues). The purpose of the event was to increase knowledge of safety in the home, school, and community. You can click here for photos from the event.
First, students of all ages visited various safety vehicles, including a Cleveland Fire Department fire truck, the Cleveland Police Department's Mobile Command Unit, an EMS ambulance, a Cuyahoga County Sheriff armored SWAT truck, and the DARE monster truck. At each, police officers, firefighters, and other public safety officials presented useful information about how kids can stay safe in their homes and communities. Kids especially enjoyed touring the inside of an ambulance, trying on SWAT gear, and seeing the police and fire dogs.
Inside Giddings, police officers visited classrooms to talk briefly about safety. Their lectures differed for each grade level so that students learned about topics pertinent to them. McGruff the Crime Dog made appearances to let kids know how they could "take a bite out of crime," and Eddie the Eagle educated them on what to do if they find a gun. Officer Jeff from the Cleveland Police Department integrated magic into discussion about valuing diversity, avoiding drugs, befriending the police, and staying on the fast track to success. Lastly, kids were given some ideas for healthy after-school snacks, like peanut butter on celery.
Giddings Principal Octavia Reid opened the assembly portion of the event, and Cleveland Central Weed & Seed Site Coordinator Orlando Grant served as its host. Representatives of Mayor Jane Campbell and Ward 5 Councilman and Council President Frank Jackson then briefly addressed the Giddings student body. The always-entertaining Officer Jeff performed his act again for the entire school, which kids truly enjoyed. Closing the ceremony was Area Superintendent of Cleveland Municipal Schools Jim Ballotta, who would spend the remainder of the day hearing his students read to him and collecting their thoughts on health and safety.
Prior to the fair, students created posters and wrote essays about safety. After the fair, students will create posters to show what lessons they have learned from the event. In each classroom, a winner will be selected and chosen to compete with other classes. The class with the best poster winner will receive a pizza party!
Community residents were invited to visit the fair to learn about safety and ways in which they can improve the quality of life in their neighborhood. They were able to speak with representatives of local governmental and nonprofit organizations to attain information about services available to them. Residents also were given free smoke detectors and other very useful items to make their homes safe. A nurse from the City of Cleveland Department of Health was on hand to provide blood pressure and blood sugar screenings.
This event was sponsored by Burten, Bell, Carr Development, Inc., Cleveland Central Weed & Seed, Giddings Elementary School, and the Partnership for a Greater Cleveland. A special thanks goes out to the participants and volunteers that made this event a huge success!
For photos from the fair, please click here. But please note that, if you have a slower Internet connection, all photos may take some time to load.
