Good morning. I'm Gene Conti, Chief Deputy Transportation Secretary.

It's my pleasure to be here and to convey the thanks and good wishes of Secretary Lyndo Tippett and Governor Mike Easley.

You should know that the Governor has issued a proclamation declaring Feb. 11-17 North Carolina Child Passenger Safety Week.

He did that largely because of your efforts to serve North Carolina families and to protect their children when they travel.

Because of you, more children will be safely buckled into child passenger restraints - and more parents and caregivers will understand the importance of being good role models by always buckling up themselves.

It is impossible to overstate the importance of your role in helping our families lead safer lives.

We thank you for your commitment, for your dedication - and for your willingness to leave your regular duties behind as you spend today an tomorrow in the exclusive pursuit of learning new and better ways to help North Carolina families.

This is the second annual North Carolina Child Passenger Safety Technical Conference, and we've worked hard to bring together many of our state's leading experts in this lifesaving field.

No doubt many of the faces you see here today are familiar.

The names of workshop panelists may belong to people you've worked with or certainly heard about.

I encourage you to take advantage of having all of these people gathered together.

Shake hands, make friends and, above all, share the experiences of your own commitment to child passenger safety.

If you haven't had a chance to look over your materials yet, allow me to quickly preview what you can expect.

We'll be covering a wide range of basics, everything from developing and evaluating your program to how to increase participation from community-based partners.

We'll talk about new technology and how to better reach at-risk populations.

We'll also talk about legal issues and how to get the media to help spread your buckle-up message.

Another important topic will be increasing awareness of - and use of - booster seats.

Many of you already know about this, but we will make a major announcement about booster seats at Monday's Child Passenger Safety Week kickoff event n Raleigh.

It's become a sort of tradition to announce the state's Valentine's gift to our youngest motorists at this annual event - the gift of free child passenger safety seats for families who otherwise could not afford to buy them.

We're doing that again, but we've got an even bigger announcement this year.

While North Carolina has committed nearly $190,000 to provide infant and convertible safety seats to our neediest families, our efforts are getting an extraordinary boost this year from "Boost America" and several key partners.

"Boost America," a program of the Ford Motor Company, is leading a nationwide effort to get more children buckled into booster seats.

This vulnerable group has been labeled "the forgotten children," but they won't be forgotten in North Carolina.

Thanks to "Boost America," 25,000 of our children will get the protection they need when traveling our roadways.

We'll discuss this program in more detail later, but you play a pivotal role in the success of this effort.

"Boost America" requires that each of its donated booster seats be installed by nationally certified technicians.

Qualified recipients - low-income families with children who meet the height and weight guidelines - will be pre-screened by local United Way agencies and appropriate partners.

If you know about a need for booster seats in your community, I strongly urge you to contact your local United Way and offer your help to provide installation and instruction.

Press events and clinics will be held next week in Raleigh, High Point and Charlotte.

If you live near these locations, I ask that you make plans to join us.

Please register with your local SAFE KIDS Buckle Up coalition - not jut to help check seats, but also to make sure you get your share of free "Boost America" booster seats for distribution in your community.

In addition to next week's three press events, many more events and individual appointments will need to be scheduled in the coming weeks and months to effectively serve both booster-seat recipients and other families who need help ensuring that their child is traveling safely.

I'm pleased to have the opportunity to recognize Brenda Hines, Ford Motor Company's Manager of U.S. Regional Operations.

Ms. Hines will tell you more about Ford's commitment to child passenger safety in a few minutes, but on behalf of all North Carolina families, I wanted to thank you and Ford for this extraordinary gift to our children.

Child passenger safety technicians across our state are ready to help these children and their families - many of whom have already been pre-screened to receive booster seats by representatives of the United Way.

I'd also like to take a moment to thank Jim Morrison, president of United Way of North Carolina, for directing his local agencies to make this project a top priority.

Because of your commitment, thousands of North Carolina children will travel more safely.

At this time it is my distinct pleasure to introduce Mrs. Mary Easley.

She's here not just as First Lady, but also as First Mom.

It's been a few years since her son has needed the protection of a safety seat, but Mrs. Easley is well aware of the challenges faced by many North Carolina families who struggle to provide safe and happy futures for their children.

These seats will make a difference in the lives of countless children, who will be spared from the potential devastation of crash-related injury.

(MRS. EASLEY GIVES REMARKS.)

Thank you, Mrs. Easley. We are grateful for your support and for being such a positive role model to North Carolina families.

Our state's more than 700 certified technicians are ready to help all families be as safe as they can be on our roadways.

The clinics that will be held this week, and in coming weeks and months, are not limited to low-income families who qualify for the "Boost America" seats.

Everyone with questions or concerns about child passenger safety is encouraged to attend a clinic or request an appointment with a local technician.

Those few minutes could mean the difference between life and death in a traffic crash.

Without the man I'm about to introduce, however, only a fraction of them would have received the training necessary to earn national certification.

Insurance Commissioner Jim Long is key partner in the effort to help all children travel safely on our roadways.

His staff is responsible for coordinating the training of dozens of new technicians each year.

Through his SAFE KIDS Buckle Up coalitions, and an ever-increasing number of fire departments that offer permanent child passenger safety fitting stations, he has established a remarkable network of people ready to help North Carolina families.

Allow me to present Jim Long, State Fire Marshal and Commissioner of Insurance...

(Insurance Commissioner Jim Long gives remarks.)

Thanks Commissioner Long, and at this time I'd like to ask Ford's Brenda Hines and United Way's Jim Morrison to make brief remarks.

(Brenda Hines and Jim Morrison give remarks.)

Thank you. Now that we understand how these lifesaving seats will be provided to needy North Carolina families, I'd like to introduce someone who can talk about why all families need to make certain their children are properly restrained on each and every trip.

Col. Richard Holden, Commander of the State Highway Patrol, has about 70 nationally certified child passenger safety technicians and more than 1,100 state-trained technicians in his ranks.

In addition to education and outreach, however, he has made enforcement of North Carolina's seat belt and child passenger safety laws a top priority with his troops.

And he's taken a tough stand when children have been victimized by a driver's failure to ensure they were properly buckled.

Sadly, such a crash occurred here in Wake County just a few weeks ago. Colonel, please tell us more about it.

(Col Richard Holden gives remarks.)

Thank you, Colonel. I hope our families understand that they don't need to wait for Child Passenger Safety Week to get advice on traveling safely with their children.

Numerous clinics will be held statewide this week, but countless more will be held in coming weeks and months - and individual appointments can be made for those unable to attend organized events.

Parents and caregivers with questions about the installation and use of child safety seats or booster seats can get expert advice any time from local law enforcement, fire & rescue personnel, or child health professionals.

And remember to contact your local United Way agency to learn if your child qualifies for a free "Boost America" booster seat.

At this time, I'd like to ask Mrs. Easley and our guest family to join me as we walk to their car to watch a nationally-certified child passenger safety technician install their new booster seat.

The media is welcome to join us, or to meet other families participating in the clinic going on behind us.

I'd like to thank everyone involved in making this event a success today - notably "Boost America" and United Way, but also the staffs of the Governor's Highway Safety Program and the Department of Insurance.

And please - remember that when you leave here today, and whenever you drive your car - buckle up, and make sure everyone with you is properly buckled up, too.

Thank you.

(Gene Conti, Mrs. Easley and FAMILY exit podium and walk to family's vehicle.)