April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and Sandy Weichman is at the helm ready to educate Wood County about traffic safety.

Weichman is the coordinator of Safe Communities of Wood County, an organization dedicated to “creating awareness and prevention of death and injuries caused by traffic crashes,” according to their website.

According to a pamphlet created by Safe Communities, there were 20,500 crashes caused by distracted driving in 2015. In Wood County, there were 19 fatal crashes in 2015.

“There’s a need for a Safe Communities in every county because we’re there as an educational tool, but we’re (also) there to help,” said Weichman.

With their office located in the Student Recreation Center at BGSU, Safe Communities of Wood County has worked closely with the University, local businesses and law enforcement agencies to raise awareness and educate the community about the consequences of distracted and drunk driving.

Weichman worked in law enforcement for 30 years and 26 of those years were spent working at the Wood County Sheriff’s Office. In 2012 she retired from the Sheriff’s Office and joined Safe Communities.

“It has been the most wonderful thing to come here,” said Weichman. “The possibilities are endless for Safe Communities with BGSU.”

The organization operates on grants that are issued by the National Highway Safety Administration. Weichman was responsible for issuing grants from the Sheriff’s Office and the experience has helped her secure grants for Safe Communities.

The amount of money Safe Communities receives is based on the total number of fatal crashes per year in Wood County. When Weichman first came to Safe Communities she said there were 15 fatal crashes per year, so the organization received $50,000 in grant money.

Since the number of fatal crashes in Wood County has increased, Safe Communities may receive an increase in grant money that would be issued to them in October.

The organization reaches the community through monthly press releases, support from University marketing and athletics and their own marketing strategies.

Weichman even worked out a deal with Lamar Outdoor and got a safe driving billboard put up on Route 6, the location with the highest amount of fatal crashes in Wood County.

Safe Communities also directly interacts with the public by setting up events like distracted driving simulations at the Wood County Fair and giving free rides home to students.

In fact, a new initiative Weichman created at Safe Communities called “Swallow Your Pride, Call for a Ride” provided rides home to students on St. Patrick’s Day. Weichman and other Safe Communities volunteers drove through downtown Bowling Green offering rides to students during the drinking festivities.

Lindsay Harmon, a senior at the University and an intern for Safe Communities, said working so close with the University has benefited both Safe Communities and the students.

“I think it’s really important that (Safe Communities) is on a college campus because not a lot of colleges have this program,” said Harmon. “It’s important for all students to … have ‘Swallow Your Pride’ and events like that.”

A quote on Weichman’s white board in her office reads, “True strength is keeping everything together when everyone expects you to fail.” And though she may have experienced failure, Weichman continues to look for new ways to engage the community.

“Even when some of the programs don’t work, she still gets everything out there and pushes people,” said Harmon, “no matter … how many times we get denied for some activities or materials.”

With her history in law enforcement, Wiechman used the connections she had in the Sheriff’s Office and Bowling Green Police Division to create a strong support system for Safe Communities.

“I would say Sandy is somewhat of a facilitator of the idea of Safe Communities, and she is a bridge to bring different organizations together,” said Maj. Justin White of the BGPD.

White met Weichman when she worked in law enforcement and “wasn’t really aware of (Safe Communities) until Sandy became involved in it.”

Mike Stock, the safety and education director for the Ohio chapter of American Bikers Aimed Toward Education, also said not many people in Wood County knew what Safe Communities was all about.

“She knows a lot of people, and a lot of people know her,” said Stock. “She’s really dedicated to what she’s doing.”

Weichman’s ability to “beat the pavement” and put in extra work has benefited Safe Communities, especially when it came to events, said Stock.

What stood out to him about Weichman was that she didn’t struggle to find volunteers for events nor did she have trouble getting donations.

“Swallow Your Pride, Call for a Ride” was a perfect example. Weichman’s partners and connections in Wood County supplied her with vans and radios without charge so the Safe Communities team could work and communicate easily.

Since the month of April is dedicated to distracted driving awareness, Weichman and her team at Safe Communities have planned events for work zone driving awareness and trips to senior centers in different parts of Wood County.

These events often involve the BGPD and University police who bring their bike patrol and canine units so the public, especially young children, can meet them and get to know their local law enforcement.

The three paid student interns who work with Weichman help her “think outside the box” to create new ideas or put a different spin on ideas that have already been tried.

The staff at Safe Communities used the upcoming prom season as a chance to market the idea of safe driving. They created stickers for corsage and boutonniere boxes with the words “Don’t Tempt Fate, The Text Can Wait.”

Weichman also finds inspiration for new events and initiatives from other safety organizations in the counties surrounding Wood County.

“I work closely with Lucas County, Fulton County and Williams County, and we get together and we’re just like, ‘What are you doing? What’s new?’” said Weichman.

The other organizations that work with Weichman and Safe Communities are able to spread awareness about their topics and often participate in the same events Safe Communities participates in.

With May being motorcycle safety awareness month, Stock and Weichman will both be planning safety events, and this will give ABATE and Safe Communities an opportunity to speak to the public in an effort to reduce motorcycle crashes.

Weichman plans to continue building her support network for Safe Communities as she finds support among the other safety organizations as well as local businesses and law enforcement agencies in Wood County.

Though it’s not always easy, Weichman says her most and least favorite part of her job is overcoming the obstacles she meets.

“The end goal is not me, and it’s not (other agencies), it’s us and our communities because we want our communities to be safe,” said Weichman.