Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jeff Garcia delivered a dual message to more than 500 Sulphur Springs Elementary School students.
He helped teach a bicycle and pedestrian safety clinic Jan. 21 with tips on coming to a full stop and looking both ways at crosswalks. And he encouraged students to "chase your dreams. You can do whatever you want to do in your life."
Garcia's recent appearance at the clinic was a one-time deal. But the safety program he helped launch is year-round in a neighborhood where most students walk to school.
The school is recruiting volunteers for "walking school buses" that will watch over and walk with students in the mornings and afternoons. "This would create a safety zone throughout the neighborhood," said Bevin Maynard, a Safe Kids Tampa coordinator with St. Joseph's Children's Hospital.
The daylong safety clinic was part of the fifth annual FedEx Air & Ground Players of the Week program. FedEx made weekly donations in NFL players' names to local Safe Kids coalitions.
Safe Kids Tampa accepted a $25,000 donation, a portion of which will pay for speed tables next to the school on 12th Street between Yukon Street and Waters Avenue. Maynard said construction is expected to begin in March.
The money also paid for items such as T-shirts, backpacks, bicycle helmets, locks and reflective wristbands. Garcia helped give away 12 bicycles and autographed footballs to students who won an art contest.
Kathy Steele
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