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A pair of twins smile for the camera after they recently received free life jackets.
A deputy from the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office is working to make sure boaters on Lake Tahoe don’t have to end their voyage if they are stopped without having proper life jackets for children.
If any children under the age of 13 aren’t wearing a jacket and don’t have a proper jacket available to them, Nevada life jacket laws allow deputies to write a ticket and terminate the boating trip.
Deputy Ben Coffindaffer, who is assigned to work aboard the WCSO’s Marine 9 boat, said he wanted to find ways to enforce that law to protect children without sending them back to shore and ruining their day on the lake.
“People neglect to realize the importance of having life jackets on kids and making sure those jackets fit properly,” Coffindaffer said. “I thought, from a safety standpoint, it makes a lot more sense to take care of the situation at the moment we stop someone on the lake without just sending them back to shore.”
So Coffindaffer created a program called “Keeping our Children Safe,” which provides life jackets to boaters who are stopped for not having jackets or not having properly fitting jackets on children.
Instead of a ticket, Coffindaffer educates visitors to the lake on proper life jacket safety and distributes one of the life jackets, which come in three sizes. He said the idea came to him after reviewing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, which show children are much more likely to die in a boating accident than adults if they aren’t wearing a life jacket.
“Fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years,” Coffindaffer said. “I knew there had to be something we could do to protect kids on the water, with the help of these organizations, we can make a difference.”
The project is partially funded by a grant from the Incline Optimist Club and West Marina in Reno and provides the life jackets for those boaters to keep.
Joe Kubo, president of the Optimist Club, said his organization was attracted to the program because it is educational and helps to protect children.
“Ben contacted us with this idea and we decided this would be a great project to help out children,” Kubo said. “It’s an educational program and it teaches mom and dad along with the kids. We’re happy to be involved.”
Coffindaffer said the program has already been a success since its premiere just before the Memorial Day weekend, when he handed out more than 10 jackets.
The Incline Marine Auxiliary is also supporting the project, said president Don Morrison. Members of the auxiliary man the boat along with Coffindaffer, and Morrison said the program is a great service to the boating community.
“In reality the voyage should be terminated, because these people are in violation of the law, but it’s a great gesture of goodwill for boaters,” Morrison said. “We all thought the program was a great idea because it doesn’t spoil a boater’s outing.”
Kubo said the Optimist Club plans to grant funds for “Keeping Our Children Safe” next year.
If any children under the age of 13 aren’t wearing a jacket and don’t have a proper jacket available to them, Nevada life jacket laws allow deputies to write a ticket and terminate the boating trip.
Deputy Ben Coffindaffer, who is assigned to work aboard the WCSO’s Marine 9 boat, said he wanted to find ways to enforce that law to protect children without sending them back to shore and ruining their day on the lake.
“People neglect to realize the importance of having life jackets on kids and making sure those jackets fit properly,” Coffindaffer said. “I thought, from a safety standpoint, it makes a lot more sense to take care of the situation at the moment we stop someone on the lake without just sending them back to shore.”
So Coffindaffer created a program called “Keeping our Children Safe,” which provides life jackets to boaters who are stopped for not having jackets or not having properly fitting jackets on children.
Instead of a ticket, Coffindaffer educates visitors to the lake on proper life jacket safety and distributes one of the life jackets, which come in three sizes. He said the idea came to him after reviewing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, which show children are much more likely to die in a boating accident than adults if they aren’t wearing a life jacket.
“Fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years,” Coffindaffer said. “I knew there had to be something we could do to protect kids on the water, with the help of these organizations, we can make a difference.”
The project is partially funded by a grant from the Incline Optimist Club and West Marina in Reno and provides the life jackets for those boaters to keep.
Joe Kubo, president of the Optimist Club, said his organization was attracted to the program because it is educational and helps to protect children.
“Ben contacted us with this idea and we decided this would be a great project to help out children,” Kubo said. “It’s an educational program and it teaches mom and dad along with the kids. We’re happy to be involved.”
Coffindaffer said the program has already been a success since its premiere just before the Memorial Day weekend, when he handed out more than 10 jackets.
The Incline Marine Auxiliary is also supporting the project, said president Don Morrison. Members of the auxiliary man the boat along with Coffindaffer, and Morrison said the program is a great service to the boating community.
“In reality the voyage should be terminated, because these people are in violation of the law, but it’s a great gesture of goodwill for boaters,” Morrison said. “We all thought the program was a great idea because it doesn’t spoil a boater’s outing.”
Kubo said the Optimist Club plans to grant funds for “Keeping Our Children Safe” next year.
