Operation ABC

Give Thanks for the Safety of Our Children

This Thanksgiving, you may be grateful for many things: family, friends, a satisfying feast. Consider adding one more to your list: responsible driving habits that keep our children safe. Last Thanksgiving, [number] people were killed on [state]'s highways, many of them the result of ignoring seat belts or driving drunk. Children riding with adults who make these choices are helpless victims. Your pledge to drive responsibly can prevent this holiday from turning tragic.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), traffic crashes are the leading cause of death and injury to children up to 15 years old. Six out of 10 children killed in crashes are not wearing seat belts or in child safety seats. And almost one quarter of child traffic deaths is alcohol-related.

Is it worth the few seconds it takes to buckle up yourself and your young passengers? If you do, your and your

children's chances of surviving a crash increase by nearly 45 percent. The couple of minutes it takes to place a child in a safety seat reduces the risk of death by 69 percent for infants and 47 percent for toddlers. Mere seconds, a

minute or two…that's all it takes to lengthen a lifetime.

And before you fill your glass just one more time before taking the wheel, consider that someone dies in an

alcohol-related crash every 33 minutes, according to the NHTSA. Children riding with an intoxicated driver are

endangered not only because of impaired driving, but also because they are unlikely to be buckled up. Refrain from drinking at your holiday celebration if you're going to drive. If you can't turn down that glass of wine, make alternative

arrangements for getting home--get a ride home with a non-drinking driver, or delay your departure overnight.

In case you need more incentive, local law enforcement officers are mobilizing this Thanksgiving weekend,

November 20 to 26, for Operation ABC--America Buckles Up Children. They'll be protecting our kids by enforcing seat belt and child safety seat laws, stopping impaired drivers, and imposing harsh penalties on offenders. Public opinion surveys show that nine out of 10 Americans support strong enforcement of child passenger safety laws. If you care about kids, you should be among them.

This Thanksgiving, when you take the wheel, take a look at your children. You'll know what to be thankful for.

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