photo by: Porter Arneill via LMH Health/Contributed Photo

In this photo from Aug. 11, 2018, attendees of the first Community Safety Fair peek at a Douglas County Sheriff's Office vehicle.

Practicing safe habits doesn’t have to be stressful — it can be fun.

That’s the message of public safety and health agencies in Douglas County as they come together for the second annual Community Safety Fair from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 10 at South Park.

“The Community Safety Fair is a unique opportunity for Lawrence and Douglas County residents to come out to South Park and get to know some of the first responders in our community,” said Sgt. Amy Rhoads of the Lawrence Police Department. “It is a fun, family-friendly event that emphasizes overall general safety.”

All Lawrence and Douglas County residents are invited to the fair to learn more about personal, family and community safety best practices as well as about the local resources available.

The Lawrence Police Department, Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office are co-hosting the event. Several other community partners are also involved and will be offering information about safety and health. Organizers have worked for several months to improve on the success of the inaugural fair in 2018.

“The Community Safety Fair provides an opportunity for the community to participate in hands-on activities that demonstrate the many safety resources available in Douglas County,” said Deputy Charlie Cooper, public information officer for the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. “For us, this is a unique opportunity to work together with our first-responder partners across the county while at the same time having fun with our community.”

Similar to the first event, the fair focuses on a wide variety of safety areas, including information about bus safety, child safety restraints, gun safety, avoiding online scams and child care safety.

Rhoads said first responders and partners seek to offer the fair as summer winds down and families and students gear up for a new school year. It’s also good timing for residents who are newer to the community and might need information on safety and various resources available.

photo by: Porter Arneill via LMH Health/Contributed Photo

In this photo from Aug. 11, 2018, attendees of the first Community Safety Fair check out a Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical truck.

The following organizations will be sharing safety information at the fair:

• Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center — WRAP Program and Mental Health First Aid

• Be SMART — Gun safety and securing guns

• The Chiropractic Element — Active Jenga and spinal screenings

• Crime Stoppers of Lawrence and Douglas County — Organization information

• Community Blood Center — Mobile donation bus and blood drive

• Douglas County Emergency Communication Center — Cell phone safety and an obstacle course

• Douglas County Emergency Management — General preparedness, wheel of misfortune and mobile command vehicle

• Douglas County Sheriff’s Office — Cell phone safety, an obstacle course and Cram the Cruiser activity

• KU Police Department — Campus safety information

• KVC Health Systems — General information

• Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical — Smoke house in the Touch-a-Truck and Cram the Cruiser activity

• Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department — Information about the organization’s programs and services, including child care safety and information on becoming a licensed child care provider

• Lawrence Police Department — Crisis Intervention Training, internet safety and scams, and Cram the Cruiser activity

• Lawrence Police Foundation — Coloring table for children

• Lawrence Public Schools — Back-to-school safety, including a bike safety course, school bus safety tips and safety information on vaping, ALICE, and the online reporting tool, All Students Safe

• Lawrence Transit — Bus pass and bus safety

• LMH Health — Car seat education

• National Association of Trailer Manufacturers — Towing safety and U-Haul demonstrator

photo by: Porter Arneill via LMH Health/Contributed Photo

In this photo from Aug. 11, 2018, kids play at the first Community Safety Fair, held at South Park.

• Parks and Recreation — Healthy living

• Premier Martial Arts — 30-minute KIDS SAFE demonstration

• Sunflower Bank — Online banking safety, Plinko game

• Willow Domestic Violence Center — Domestic violence information

Entertainment:

• A&B entertainment — Bounce houses

• McGruff the Crime Dog

• Police, fire and emergency car tours

Food vendors:

• Air Summer Snow — Snow cones

• Sarah’s Sweet Tarts & Treats — Breakfast pastries

— George Diepenbrock is communications officer at the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department.