Memphis mom uses accident to emphasize car seat safety
A local mom and her husband are thankful she was a nag when it came to the couple’s infant son.
Rebecca Tafaro Boyer, returning from maternity leave to her job as a nurse at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, demanded hourly updates last month from her husband, David, on how new son William was faring without her.
Little did Rebecca and David know that her careful monitoring would save William from potential harm in an auto accident.
Boyer recounted the incident in a lengthy Facebook post last month that went viral. The post, offering instruction on proper use of a car seat in addition to recounting her personal story, has to date been shared 33,000 times. It also has received more than 8,000 likes and generated more than 2,000 comments.
Her story even made the Today Show Tuesday.
Boyer said her husband texted her July 14 that he and baby William were out in the car making rounds. Boyer replied that William needed to be repositioned in his car seat.
“The straps were too loose and the chest clip was way too low,” Boyer said she told her husband. “And because I know my husband, I’m sure that he laughed at me and rolled his eyes before tightening the car seat and fixing the chest clip.”
A bit later, she got a panicked call from her husband saying he and William had been in an accident.
“My precious little bundle of joy was so well restrained in his car seat, THAT HE DIDN’T EVEN WAKE UP,” Boyer wrote on Facebook. “Even with the impact of the two cars, William only received a minor jolt — so insignificant that he was able to continue on with his nap, and then spend the next two hours flirting with nurses in the Le Bonheur ED.”
David wasn’t as lucky — he had a broken foot and three dislocated toes.
Boyer said she shared the story on Facebook to emphasize that car seats can save lives. She noted that all infants should be rear-facing in car seats until 2 years old and secured by a five-point harness in a seat that doesn’t move more than an inch in any direction.
Boyer noted that the car seat was trash since car seats aren’t supposed to be re-used after a serious accident.
Seat maker Britax offered to replace the seat for free after the company hear the Boyers’ story, but she said the seat had been replaced already by the insurance company.