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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (May 13, 1962)
You Can "Block Off" Trouble! If you fear for your child's safety as he walks to and from school, follow the lead of other concerned parents and organize a Block Parent Plan in your neighborhood By NORAH SMARIDGE WHEN LITTLE GIRLS are lost, they are supposed to be terribly frightened. But that wasn't the case with the pony tailed tot who stood on Mrs. Anita Hills' porch when she went to answer her doorbell. "I don't know where my house is. Would you tell me, please?" the youngster piped cheerfully. Mrs. Hills invited her inside, and the little girl continued in a matter-of-fact way: "We just moved here and I al ready know how to get to and from school by myself. But today I guess I forgot. Would you show me?" Mrs. Hills asked the little girl's name, telephoned the school, and with in minutes had the child's address and was walking her home. ' The terror of being lost is universal among children. The little girl who stopped at Mrs. Hills' door was no more immune to it than any other youngster. But one factor made a dif ference she attended Halcyon School in San Leandro, Calif. Pupils at Halcyon can stray far from their familiar routes and still find in every block a sign that reads "BP." The letters stand for "block parent," but to a youngster they say: "Here's a friend who can help me." San Leandro is the home of the Block Parent Plan. It was not specifi cally designed to assist lost children, but it has been of great help in such instances. The 'plan was initiated about five years ago, when the par ents of Halcyon School pupils were becoming worried about the increase I 'ill a.;,. f . qwrgwiWWW'f'- : ' 1iMMiiiiim.mij-il j J CS CHJ&niS ,,,,, v. ; .77 31 'Ml Im" ;-J 19 'KENTUCKY 6? B- . ; '( r t-i Biff , tu 0 );-; f liiXl !j 1999-899 ItiimM A . ALASKA y 2jJt Wtjbsh".-. j VACATIONIAHO r. ntTflrnTt' :- -" jH ! ACK-303 66 J 965 QKQ . HJA 10 Pftfl BUD 123 p 12022 1 J J I W-l 8 6 5 1 v ; I ,v KK' 57 ; 1 37 T337 2 MM HDGm 26 4000 l 1 2 1 . GG 3550 THE MORE THE MILES, THE As your mileage piles up, your car gets tougher on tires. With shock absorbers, steering, brakes no long er new, you need tires that will stand up under rough use yet give you the mileage you want. That's when you need Atlas PlycronCushionaire Tires with rugged stamina built into every inch. Extensive tests in the laboratory and on the road prove they give extra performance. With Atlas Tires on your car, you can I WHEN THE CHOICE IS YOURS... H!llUilHllli!i!iIUHH!iilliiiiim!!H!HHHinHilHI!HHii-!HiiiHiIHimH!imHHmiliHHi!iiiiniliiillHH!l!l!lliliUi IHiiiKlllHiHIiUiUiHlHi-HliiiHiiliHUiHiHIllllHHiiiiHil in crimes against small children. unusual plan for safeguarding young- Can other communities do what San "We need more eyes on the street," sters against injury and molestation. Leandro has done? Certainly. Many one mother observed. "The police Put into operation with the co-opera- cities already have set up similar can't supervise such a wide area. We tion of the P. T. A. and the San Le- plans, so if you and your neighbors ought to take a hand in it ourselves." andro police department, it has proved feel your area needs a Block Parent So the parents came up with their both sane and workable. Plan, begin by taking these steps: MORE YOUR CAR NEEDS count on safe stops, smooth ride, thrifty mileage. Nobody knows tire performance, brand by brand, better than an Atlas Dealer. Today there are more than 50,000 of these dealers . . . more service station men recommending and selling Atlas Tires than any other brand. Wherever you travel ... in all 50 States and in Canada . . . you'll always find Atlas Service near at hand. , , r j NOVA SCOTIA '6-2 I 1 4-5 1 Z5 j V ,012-345 , A CUSHIOKAIRC (f (f H mi ! 1 491-327 it WEST VIRGINIA K WIS' JAN ,6J iMMMiuun be1 twIiKUAIrld Ucter vaiidmUa plat, for 19M ATLAS TIRES A 158 ftKf RiCft'S DfttdYL0 NOW 2 QUICK ACTION GUARANTEES: Yau choose th on ttut htmflU yn mtt Adjustments are prorated either on LIFE OF TREAD based on original tread depth remaining or number of months IN USE since purchase date, and on current retail priqe at time and place of adjustment Either guarantee protects against damage Incurred under normal driving conditions. Honored on the spot at more than 50,000 service stations in all 50 states and Canada. choose AT LAS' IIHIiliiMlUIimilHmiiiiiiHIIlliliilliiilHiiliiHiiimmiiiHiiiHIIIiiUHiHHiHHiininiilliniilllHIilHIlHIiHn 1. Organize ynder the sponsorship of the P.T.A. or some other stable, re spected neighborhood group. 2. Get the support of your school's principal. Allow him to decide whether your committee or his staff should 7 TrM.-m.rfc. "All..." "PUfw." "Cutaion.ir." Rflr. U.S. P.I. (Hf, O 1.01 AIIU flupply O... NWrtl 1, M. i. teach the children the meaning of the Block Parent sign. 3. Get permission to use school files for compiling a list of names, ad-, dresses, and phone numbers of all par ents of children in your school. 4. Mail letters to each home, ex plaining the need of a Block Parent Plan in your area, and ask for full co-operation and assistance. Ask those who would like to volunteer to call the chairman of your committee. (Don't let them upset school routine by tele phoning there!) 5. Keep a record listing volunteers and this information: Name of the proposed Block Parent, number of adults riving in the house, number of . children under 12 living there, the husband's occupation, the hours that he is away from home, and the wife's occupation. Information of fered by other sources than the vol unteer (for instance, neighbors and teachers) are noted on the card. This may sound like an excessive amount of checking. But it isn't. Peo ple have volunteered who have alco holics or persons with contagious dis eases in their homes. Such volunteers, of course, are rejected. In San Leandro, all block parents agreed to be fingerprinted and checked for criminal records. Not all commu nities may wish to go to such lengths. These measures, however, help reas sure parents that a home with a Block Parent sign has been thoroughly in vestigated and found safe. BLOCK PARENTS themselves must be protected against liability. To this end, the following rules should be explained to them and written on the backs of the signs they display in their windows. 1. Do not transport youngsters in your car. Call the proper person for the child's particular problem. (a) Lost child under school age, call your police department. (b) Lost child of school age, call your school. (c) Slightly injured child, send on to school or back to his home. (d) Seriously injured child, call school or parent. (e) Critically injured child, call police for aid. They will call an am bulance, if necessary. 2. In case of injury, do not admin ister first aid except to stop excessive bleeding or restore breathing. Contact parent, school, or police. 3. Do not offer food or beverages to any youngster. Some children are al lergic to certain foods. 4. A report must be made to your committee chairman within four hours after the child is helped. 5. When a child has been frightened by a stranger, notify the police and committee chairman immediately. Once the plan is in action, parents must do their share. They must re mind their children continually to go to the Block Parent when in trouble. The Block Parent is not asked to go out and look for children in distress. When the Block Parent plan is es tablished in a community, parents rest., easier. Not only does the plan provide help in dozens of minor mishaps, but it is an efficient way of protecting small children against the many haz ards of modern-day living. i Family Weekly. May 13, 1962 Family Weekly. May 13, 1962 9
