EARLHAM, Iowa — When Earlham farm wife Marilyn Adams founded Farm Safety 4 Just Kids (FS4JK) 25 years ago, she had no idea just how big an impact she would make in offering hope and healing to families who have lost loved ones in farm accidents.

“I didn’t really know what to expect when I started FS4JK,” she said. “The organization has grown and evolved so much in the past 25 years. It’s exciting to think about what lies ahead for the farm safety movement.”

In 1987, Adams lost her 11-year-old son, Keith, in a gravity flow grain wagon accident. Ever since, she has been on a mission to promote a safe farm environment to prevent health hazards, injuries and fatalities to children and youth.

According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, from 1998-2009 the rate of all farm youth injuries – the second highest fatality rate among youth workers – has decreased by 59 percent, with FS4JK specifically mentioned as a contributing factor. Over the past 25 years,

FS4JK has established a network of 130 local chapters across 33 states in the United States and in four Canadian provinces that offer farm safety presentations on a local level.

In addition, FS4JK outreach coordinators in 10 states offer farm safety education statewide at no cost. FS4JK has also researched and created more than 100 educational materials and resources about various farm safety topics, which are available to the public.

In 2010 alone, outreach coordinators and chapter networks delivered more than 1,200 community events to 169,000 youth and farm families, with 8,500 volunteers donating 41,000 hours. In addition, another 1.9 million were reached through media interviews, press releases, trade shows and fairs, with more than 35,600 volunteers donating over 280,000 hours.

“The people conducting these presentations on the local level make the organization what it is today,” said Tyler Vacha, FS4JK chapter and membership director.

Because FS4JK focuses on prevention through education, “our goal is to teach the next generation of farmers to be safe to help perpetuate the industry,” said Shari Burgus, FS4JK education director.

Adams also established The Children’s Safety Campaign, an endowment that receives donations from corporations and individuals to meet FS4JK’s goal of “reaching every kid on every farm.”

“Our dream at FS4JK is to make sure every child in the U.S. has an opportunity to learn how to be safe on farms and in rural settings,” Adams said. “We can only achieve that goal through our recently created Children’s Safety Campaign endowment.”

Funded by corporate sponsors and individual donors, FS4JK’s current projects include overhauling the current ATV (all terrain vehicle) safety packet. Moreover, with small, part-time farms on the rise, FS4JK has been working with the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health to research the impact of safety needs in the changing demographics of agriculture.

“The tremendous support we’ve seen from sponsors over the past 25 years has been incredible,” said Dave Schweitz, FS4JK executive director. “It’s a true testament to the importance of the farm safety movement and their dedication to their customers.”