CHILDREN STUDY ACCIDENT PREVENTION AT VMH FARM SAFETY CAMP

Veterans Memorial Hospital hosted their second annual Progressive Farmer Farm Safety Day Camp on Thursday, June 8, at the Allamakee Fairgrounds in Waukon.
This Progressive Farmer Farm Safety Day Camp drew 150 children ages 7 to 14 from throughout Allamakee and Clayton counties for a day long session on how to take responsibility for their own safety, respect parents' safety rules and share safety tips with their family and friends.
According to Jeff Mitchell, EMS Coordinator, and coordinator of this event, the camp was a huge success. “All of the children that attended really listened and watched all of the demonstrations and speakers at the event. We told them to remember all of the safety lessons they learned and actually follow them, not only out on the farm, but during any situation that may apply. We even told them to help teach others, including their parents and siblings, the safety rules they learned today.”
Hands-on experiences led by local community members taught camp participants lifetime farm safety lessons. Over time, Mitchell said he hopes that by sharing and applying the lessons learned at the camp, participants will help to reduce the number of rural children who die or are injured in farm accidents each year.
The children were divided into 10 different groups and spent twenty minutes at each of the ten farm safety stations. These 10 stations and their instructor(s) included:
Lawn mower/chain saw safety lessons by Mike Myers, VMH; pinch points and fire safety by      Ron Leas, Ron's Repair Shop, and Kevin Bublitz, VMH; tractor/skid loader information, by Dan Meyer, ISU Extension; bicycle/ATV safety, demonstrated by      Sherry Hartong, Allamakee Artic Cat; first-aid kits, by Lynn Palas, MFL Ambulance; disability awareness, by farm accident survivor Vernon Shogren,in correlation with VMH staff members Machelle Bulman and Erin Berns; electrical hazards,      Gary Passmore, Allamakee-Clayton REC, and Dave Cota, Cota Electric Service; grain safety/tug of war, presented by former extension director,      Lee Gruenhaupt; hazardous chemical safety,      Justin Kennedy, United Cooperative; firearm safety, Jim Janett, Allamakee County Conservation Commission; and animal safety demonstrations,      Dr. Rod Smed, Waukon Veterinary Service. Food coordinators for the camp were VMH staff members Ruth Hanson and Brandi O'Brien; and Dwight Watkins, Waukon State Bank, along with Gene Leiran, VMH, served as grounds coordinator.
The campers were also all called together at two different times during the day for large group demonstrations. The first demonstration involved a dummy getting caught in a Power Take Off entanglement and another demonstration of a heavy gate and a dual tractor tire falling on a watermelon and what that could mean to a child in that situation.
The second large group demonstration included a fly-in by Med Link Air helicopter of Gundersen Lutheran Hospital, and animal safety demonstrations instructed by Dr. Rod Smed of the Waukon Veterinary Service.
Rallying to support this year’s Farm Safety Camp was an extended listing of Waukon area businesses. Various organizations donated time, materials, food, or even their own employees to ensure the camp’s success. “This event is such a large undertaking that we could not have done it without the help and support of all of these businesses and organizations,” stated Mike Myers, Administrator at Veterans Memorial Hospital. “We plan to offer this program to children again next year. We felt it was truly a beneficial event in such a strong agricultural community.”
For further information on the Progressive Farmer Farm Safety Day Camps in Waukon, please contact Jeff Mitchell, EMS Coordinator, Veterans Memorial Hospital at (319) 568-3411.