DeKalb Committee accepts donated child comfort kits and 1,000 smoke alarms for community safety

DeKalb County’s Employee Relations and Public Safety Committee voted to accept two public-safety donations: 100 age-appropriate comfort kits intended to help children after traumatic calls and 1,000 smoke alarms to support community risk reduction.

Director Fulham described the child comfort kits as age-appropriate items — stress balls, stuffed animals and noise-blocking items — supplied and assembled by a nonprofit called First Responders Trauma (based in North Carolina). “They supply all the items…and then we dole them out between fire and EMS,” Director Fulham said. The committee motion to accept the kits carried by voice vote; the transcript states the kits are “valued at $2,000” but does not specify whether that figure is the total value for all 100 kits or a per-kit valuation.

On the smoke alarms, staff requested permission to accept 1,000 units valued at $34,970 to further community-risk reduction efforts. Staff reported installing 500 alarms so far this year (773 installed last year) and explained residents can request installations via a QR code on the county website; public-safety crews also run door-to-door “smoke alarm blitzes” and install alarms for residents in need. Director Fulham noted the donated alarms come with 10-year lithium batteries.

Both donations were approved by voice votes; the transcript does not record roll-call tallies. Staff will continue installations and outreach through the public-safety unit’s reported QR-code request system and blitzes.

Provenance: discussion and approvals appear in the transcript beginning at SEG 230 (kits) and SEG 285 (smoke alarms) and extending through SEG 351.