Our hearts go out to the millions of families who were affected by Hurricane Sandy. We are so grateful to emergency personnel who are working around the clock to make things better.

If there is one thing this “storm of the century” has taught us, it’s the importance of planning ahead and being safe.

Thursday was Safe Kids Day on Capitol Hill. We held a bipartisan event on September 20 to educate Senators, Members of Congress and their staff about the risks that kids face and the challenges parents have in preventing unintentional injury, the #1 killer of kids in America.

My job is a pretty good one. When I’m asked what I do at Safe Kids, I usually distill my answer to three things: make sure kids have fun, stay active and are free from injury. Not a bad 9-5, right? Practically speaking, much of my time is spent on the third item, keeping kids safe while at play.

Sadly, between 2008 and 2010, over 22,000 children age 9 and younger were injured by preventable furniture tip-overs or instability. Lisa Marie, a parent advocate who has been working with Safe Kids, graciously shares her heartbreaking story of her son Shane.