Write a commentOswego County’s 15th Annual Progressive Agriculture Safety Day was held on June 9, 2017 at the Oswego County Fairgrounds in Sandy Creek.
This Safety Day is considered one of the largest in the state involving nearly 575 people with over 450 fifth grade students attending from schools across the county. Students from Lura Sharp Elementary, Sandy Creek Elementary, Central Square Intermediate School, Granby Elementary, Hastings-Mallory Elementary and AA Cole Elementary learned about safety topics relating to home and on the farm.
Home and farm safety is a very important issue. Every 3 days a child dies in an ag-related incident, every day - 38 children are injured in ag-related incidents. Annually childhood injuries and fatalities cost an estimated 1.4 billion dollars. One of the best ways to reduce these numbers is through education. Educating youth and adults about safety related hazards and how to avoid injuries at home, work and play is the goal of the Progressive Agriculture Safety Days. Since the first local event held in 2003, the Oswego County Safety Days have reached over 6,500 fifth grade students. If Safety Day has prevented just one accident or death – than it is a successful program. It is hoped that the students share with others what they have learned, thus preventing more injuries and possible deaths.
Progressive Agriculture Safety Day is designed to teach youth and families about safety at home and on the farm in order to prevent accidents, using a hands-on approach. Thirty-one guest presenters, from various local organizations, set up twenty-one stations throughout the fairgrounds, sharing their own special fields of expertise with the students. Organizations that attended and supported the 2017 Safety Day include: NYS Park Police, NY State Police, Mexico Volunteer Fire Dept., COCOAA, Os. Co. Traffic Safety Board, Os. Co. Health Dept., Verizon, National Grid, Os. Co. Prevention Coalition, American Red Cross, NYCAMH, Os. Co. Humane Society, NYS Dept. Of Environmental Conservation, Exelon Generation, as well as educators from Oswego County Cooperative Extension, 4-H Leaders and independent business owners. Some of the safety issues explored included lawn mower safety, safety with animals: including dogs as well as large and small farm animals, how to operate a fire extinguisher, electrical, mechanical and firearm safety as well as safety on and around the water. A group presentation, involving a tractor and manure spreader, demonstrated how quickly an accident could occur involving farm equipment. Another team of 30 volunteers from the community and Excelon Generation shared their time to help with setup and teardown as well as serve as escorts for the individual classes to keep the day running smoothly and efficiently. A big thanks to all the presenters and volunteers for their time and all the valuable information they shared with the students.
Another big portion of the success of the Oswego County Progressive Agriculture Safety Day is local sponsorship. Thank you Exelon Generation, Operator of Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station! In addition to their generous monetary contribution, Exelon provides several employee volunteers throughout the day to serve as cheerful escorts for the classes, to teach safety lessons, or do whatever else is needed to make Safety Day the fun, educational event that it is! Thank you to Stewart’s Holiday Match for providing the First Aid Kits for each student in the Take Home Bags. Thank you to Cazenovia Equipment in Sandy Creek for providing the farm equipment for the group demonstration.
“The Oswego County Progressive Agriculture Safety Day is truly a community effort, with everyone working together with the common goal of reducing home/farm injuries and deaths through education. It lasts just one day, but hopefully the lessons learned will be remembered a lifetime,” says Debbie Holliday, Safety Day Coordinator and 4-H Educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oswego County. Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oswego County and the Oswego County Farm Bureau coordinate the Oswego County Progressive Agriculture Safety Day.
Cornell Cooperative Extension is an employer and educator recognized for valuing AA/EEO, Protected Veterans, and Individuals with Disabilities and provides equal program and employment opportunities.
