WASHOE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE NEWS RELEASE – The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office has just released a new Safety Activity Book filled with fun and entertaining activities for kids. However, the book does have an important mission – teaching young children how to stay safe.
“The activity book is definitely a great deal of fun,” Sheriff Mike Haley said. “But more importantly, it provides a format that will engage kids in learning about personal safety and their role in the overall safety of our community. The book provides a wonderful opportunity for the Sheriff’s Office to partner with parents, educators and caretakers to empower our children to stay safe.”
The new activity book features information on “stranger danger,” staying safe at home, safety at school, and safety on the internet. It also features information on bike safety, gun safety, the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and much more.
The Sheriff’s Office safety activity book was inspired by a similar book created by cartoonist and columnist David Fitzsimmons for the Pima County Sheriff’s Office in Arizona. Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Community Relations Administrator Tami Cummings was impressed by how successfully Fitzsimmon’s work conveyed safety messages to children so Cummings contacted Fitzsimmons to ask if Washoe County could duplicate his book.
Fitzsimmons enthusiastically agreed to give his work to the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. Cummings then began looking for a local cartoonist who would be willing to volunteer time and talent to personalize the book for northern Nevada residents.
Mike Griffus, a local Wells Fargo Bank employee, donated his services and spent six months going over the book page-by-page to give it a local flair.
“Thanks to the talent and generosity of Mike Griffus and David Fitzismmons, we now have the perfect tool for teaching safety awareness to our children,” Cummings said. “Everything we talk about is in this book so it will be a great help to our staff as they talk to kids about personal and community safety.”
PDF copies of the new activity book are available to download from the Sheriff’s Office website: WashoeSheriff.com. Copies of the book are also available from the Sheriff’s Office Community Relations section by calling 775-785-6205.
The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office celebrated 150 years of proud service and community partnership in 2011. Sheriff Michael Haley is the 25th person elected to serve as the Sheriff of Washoe County. His office continues to be the only full service public safety agency operating within northern Nevada and is responsible for operating the consolidated detention facility, regional crime lab, Northern Nevada Counter Terrorism Center, Internet Crimes against Children Task Force, court security, service of civil process, traditional street patrols and Regional Animal Services.
