Rose Brucia Educational Foundation Responds to Abduction Attempts

After an abnormal amount of child abduction attempts in the East Islip School District, The Rose Brucia Educational Foundation recently gave a presentation at John F. John F. Kennedy Elementary School.

Through two shows for about 500 students, Matt Barbis, the foundation’s director, implored the laurels of stranger safety with a lecture on passwords, an educational puppet show and dispersal of a DNA kit.

“I got really emotional watching him, because he would reflect on what he had been through in his own life,” said Sue Kavanaugh, who sits on the health and safety committee for the JFK PTA and was instrumental in getting Barbis to come. “He was wonderful with the kids.”

Barbis started the foundation in response to a tragedy in his own family in 2004.

Later that night, Kavanaugh said she spoke with multiple parents and students who raved about the secret code or password that Barbis mentioned as a way to keep strangers in check.

“The kids had such a good experience,” she said.

According to Kavanaugh, there were eight attempted abductions between Oct. 8 and Jan. 7 in East Islip.  

“With the recent rise of attempted abductions in the East Islip area, it is more important than ever to get the word out and teach our children about abduction prevention through our Stranger Safety Awareness Program,” Barbis said. “By providing the community and school-aged children with an informative program that focuses on simple, realistic tips, we are not just raising awareness … we are educating and empowering our youth to protect themselves in the event of an actual crisis.” 

Building principal Aileen O’Rourke said she will be speaking to other principals about spreading stranger safety awareness.

“The kids truly enjoyed it and he made it very kid friendly,” she said. “They got their message across, afterwards kids were all talking about it. One time wasn’t enough, we have to continue to bring an assembly back to the school and remind kids to have their password, or magic word; to really keep them aware of strangers.”