SAFE

April 20, 2010 – Paulding County Safety Awareness

SAFE admin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:09:50 +0000

SAFE will be a presenter at the Paulding County Safety Awareness night at Chattahoochee Technical College on April 20 from 7 pm to 9 pm. They will be presenting on the dangers of the “choking game” and signs and symptoms you could look out for in the people around you. It’s not just education, it’s prevention.

Safety Summit at McClure Middle School

SAFE admin — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:29:00 +0000

Randy and Mike will be at mcClure Middle School in Paulding County at their annual Family Safety Summit. Mike and Randy will be discussing the choking game and it’s impact on children. other topics include:

sexting
cyberbullying
social media concerns (facebook/myspace)

Presentation @ Rockmart Church of Christ

SAFE admin — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:07:52 +0000

Randy Wilson, co-founder of SAFE, will be at Rockmart Church of Christ on Sept 13, 2009 at 5pm. SAFE will be presenting to the adults and children on the dangers of the choking game and it’s effects on the body and others around you.

Public Safety Day

SAFE admin — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 17:36:54 +0000

Saturday, September 19, 2009 SAFE will be at the Dallas Wal-Mart from 10 am – 2 pm. Each year Paulding County Sheriff’s Office sponsors a Safety Day for the county and this year SAFE will be in attendance. Come out and meet us, pick up some information about the choking game, and purchase a shirt to show your support for SAFE. We look forward to seeing you there.

4th of July

SAFE admin — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 18:10:38 +0000

Taking place on the 3rd of July, SAFE will be at North Point Baptist Church in Carrollton, GA. for their annual 4th of July celebration. Come out and show your patriotic spirit and find out more info about SAFE at the same time.

David Thompson 5/22/1987 – 12/10/06

SAFE admin — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 21:47:39 +0000

David Thompson Senior Picture

Mike and Angela Thompson are on a mission to make other parents aware of an incredibly dangerous game called the Choking Game.

The Thompsons know how risky the game can be after losing their son David, 19, in December.

“Some people described him as funny and crazy,” Angela Thompson said. “I saw him as the big, strong, quiet type.” David was one of the good kids. He graduated from Heard County High School last year where he lettered all four years in wrestling and football.

He was a defensive lineman, one of the coach’s favorites.

“David Thompson was one of those kids who showed up, worked hard everyday and made you very proud,” Coach Tim Barron said.

He was an active member of the youth group at North Point Baptist Church, where he shared his plans for the future with his pastor.

“He had felt like the Lord called him to be in the ministry, and he had actually just enrolled in a Christian college,” said Pastor Rodney Agan.

He had so much to look forward to at the age of 19 but risked it all when he decided to play the Choking Game one afternoon in December.

“And if he was sitting here right now, he would tell you, `I made a foolish decision. Don’t do this,’” Mike Thompson said.

Mike Thompson was the one who discovered his son’s body.

According to a report by the Heard County Sheriff’s Department, David locked himself in his bedroom, put a nylon strap around his necked and wrapped it once around part of a shoe rack on his closet door.

David's Football Picture

“It hadn’t been no more than ten minutes since I spoke to him,” Mike said. “And I thought if I could get a pulse, the EMTs were on their way, then maybe we could bring him back.”

The coroner ruled David’s death an accident.

According to his death certificate, he was fatally injured while playing the Choking Game.

“This game seems to be played mostly by [those] who we term as the good kids, those kids who don’t do alcohol or don’t take drugs,” Angela Thompson said.

Boys and girls as young as 9-years-old play the Choking Game to get a drug-free high.

In small groups or on their own, they choke themselves to the brink of unconsciousness so they can feel a rush as oxygen flows back to the brain.

“I had no idea that David was ever exposed to this game and the curiosity I guess of the game,” Mike Thompson said.

In David’s case, investigators found several safety features he used to make sure he would not die, but all of them failed. “We’ve just got to get the word out that kids are playing this awful game,” Mike Thompson said.

“We don’t want this to happen to another family,” Angela Thompson added.

The Thompsons said there were no warning signs, and the coroner found no physical evidence that David had played the game before.

It’s such a risky game, the first time may be the last.

[See post to watch Flash video]

The DB Foundation

SAFE admin — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:40:05 +0000

The DB Foundation is community based and community driven. By coming together, through our community, we are reaching the goal of raising awareness. We are a group of dedicated volunteers striving to prevent senseless child deaths and injuries from dangerous adolescent behaviors by providing education and awareness and sharing our experience and knowledge. Each volunteer brings to the table their experience and expertise. The mission of this Foundation and these volunteers is to establish and implement awareness and education accessible to parents, schools, law enforcement, Health Care Professionals and therefore children. This will be achieved through school assemblies, community presentations, a website presence and availability to the general media and a quarterly newsletter in addition to several other avenues.

To read more about The DB Foundation, please visit their website.

www.chokinggame.net

G.A.S.P.

SAFE admin — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:35:42 +0000

Games Adolescents Shouldn’t Play is an international not–for–profit association founded for the purpose of putting an end to the Choking Game—an asphyxiation activity that causes the needless death of children and suffering of communities. To achieve this goal, GASP partners with other organizations that include Choking Game education as part of their overall message. To read more about G.A.S.P. please visit their website .

www.stop-the-choking-game.com

Brandon Wroe R.I.P. 01/06/09

SAFE admin — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:21:05 +0000

Brandon Wroe - age 12

“Good night, Daddy, I love you and I’ll see you tomorrow” was the last thing I heard my son say. Hello, my name is Randy Wilson. Brandon is my son who tried what is called a game, the choking game. My son Brandon was a very smart 12 year old who loved life and already had his life planned out. Brandon was already enrolled in college at West Georgia College, in Carrolton, GA for the early college program. At the time my son would have graduated he would have had two years of college already complete. But on January 6, 2009 I awoke to the worst nightmare of my life. All I heard was my wife screaming from my son’s bedroom. As I ran into Brandon’s bedroom I saw my son dead in front of his closet. As I tried with all my might there was nothing I could do to help my son out of that situation. At the funeral one little girl said that he was dared to play “the choking game” or “flatliner”. My wife Tracy asked her what she was talking about. The girl began to explain what the “game” was. This is the reason why S.A.F.E. got started. Our mission is to educate the public about the dangers of this game and not to see any other parents go through what we are going through.[See post to watch Flash video]