Our Mission
Preventing Avoidable Tragedies
The Sofia Foundation for Children's Safety was founded in 2017 to help prevent the avoidable tragedy of pediatric vehicular heatstroke. With our first campaign, we hope to reach millions of families with our message of prevention. The Bag in the Back campaign aims to:
Empower parents and caregivers by creating comprehensive and easy-to-read materials on hazards that put infants’ and children’s lives at risk.
Advise caregivers, healthcare providers, educators, and the community of safety and prevention habits that can be implemented immediately.
Promote awareness via social media campaigns on simple, effective habits that can minimize and prevent accidents.
Amplify the message by identifying the key advocacy partners needed to reinforce these prevention habits and drive widespread habit adoption.
Build a supportive community where everyday dangers and hazards are de- stigmatized and can be discussed openly and without judgment.
Our Mission
Sofia's Story
"We wanted to drive the adoption of the habit of putting a bag in the backseat so parents, if they lose awareness, will catch themselves" - Karen Osorio, Bag in the Back Founder & President
The Sofia Foundation for Children’s Safety was founded in honor of Sofia Victoria and all of the children who have died tragically in hot car deaths.
Sofia Victoria died on August 23rd, 2017 while both parents were at work. Her parents realized early on in their grieving journey that Sofia’s death could have been prevented and that the only way to cope was to take action to prevent a similar tragedy from happening to others.
Thus, the Sofia Foundation for Children’s Safety was born. The Bag in the Back campaign and mnemonic was created to aid in both mental and physical prevention, with the campaign urging parents to leave an essential personal item — think laptop, ID badge, cell phone or briefcase — in the back seat so that, before they locked their car, they would be forced to open the back door to retrieve the item. Developing this habit helps minimize the risk of leaving a child in the car unintentionally.
The Bag in the Back campaign kicked off with a short video accompanied by a window sticker to spread awareness. We wholeheartedly believe we can save lives by encouraging parents and caregivers to habitually place a bag in the back of their vehicle alongside their child.
Please join us by sharing this idea with all those whose lives might be positively impacted by this work.