The Debby Sayah Grandparent Outreach Project

Grandparents are the teachers, caregivers and pillars of any family. For all these reasons, it’s crucial for them to have information on children’s product safety to protect the children under their care. In 2009, KID launched The Debby Sayah Grandparent Outreach Project to provide lifesaving product safety information that is specifically targeted to the needs of this essential population of caregivers.

The program is named in memory of Deborah R. Sayah, mother to KID board member Judy Sage. Debby was a wonderful grandma who was passionately devoted to her grandchildren. Her grandson, Andy, was suffocated on a foam sleep positioner in 2001. This program is the legacy of Andy and all of the children who’ve been injured or killed by unsafe children’s products.

Click here to view the program flyer.

The Debby Sayah Grandparent Outreach Project seeks to empower grandparents to protect children from unsafe and recalled children’s products. Use the following action steps to start protecting your grandchildren now:

Check all children’s products for recalls and other safety hazards. Check all products used in caring for children, whether they’re used on a daily basis or for the occasional visit, including new and second-hand items, products in storage, vintage items and family heirlooms. Visit the SFTS’s What can you do page for more information on how to register and inventory your children’s products, and how to report unsafe products.

Note: KID urges you to think twice before using second-hand children’s products, as these items may not conform to current safety standards and can be hazardous. Used products are more susceptible to hardware failure and may have been recalled.

Learn more about KID’s workshop, Don’t Learn about Recalls from your Grandchild, an interactive presentation to educate grandparents with information on identifying and removing unsafe children’s products from homes and other childcare settings. Developed in consultation with the City Wide Task Force on Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Grandchildren, this workshop and KID’s grandparent safety resources are part of a focused campaign to provide these essential caregivers with lifesaving children’s product safety information. Contact KID to inquire about presentations opportunities.

Download KID’s brochure, Are your Grandkids SAFE? for basic information on children’s product safety and the Three Steps to Safety. Access other KID materials from our publications page.

Sign up to receive KID’s email listserv dedicated to grandparents and product safety issues.

Support KID’s vital safety work. Your contributions will enable KID to sustain this program and increase outreach to educate consumers on children’s product safety and recalls.

Sleep environment safety: KID believes a safe sleep environment is a crib, bassinet or portable crib/play yard that meets CPSC and ASTM standards with a tightly fitted sheet and a baby placed on its back—nothing else should be in the crib. Sleepers and wearable blankets can help parents avoid possible hazardous blankets in the crib.

Note: Make sure to check all types of sleep environments for recalls and other safety issues. This includes cribs, bassinets, portable cribs, play yards, bunk beds and toddler beds. Visit KID’s crib page for more information and download KID’s Safe Sleep Tips, a handy flyer on how to create safe sleeping environments and a list of the latest sleep environment recalls. Now available in Polish.