[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 42 (Tuesday, April 12, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H1853-H1854]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING DEEP SADNESS AT THE TRAGIC DEATH OF MEGHAN AGNES BECK AND 
  THANKING THE BECK FAMILY FOR THEIR EFFORTS ON BEHALF OF CHILDREN'S 
                                 SAFETY

  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with deep sadness at the 
tragic death of Meghan Agnes Beck of Sterling, Massachusetts. Meghan 
died on December 18, 2004, at the young age of 3 years old. She died 
from injuries sustained as a result of her dresser falling on top of 
her in the early morning while the rest of her family was sleeping.
  Meghan was a beautiful young girl full of confidence and life. She 
leaves behind her twin brother Ryan, older brother Kyle, and her 
parents Ralph and Kimberly. Despite their sadness and pain, Meghan's 
parents are moving forward, spreading a message to other parents around 
the country. They are raising awareness about the importance of 
preventing furniture tip-overs that can result in injury or death to 
children.
  Sadly, Meghan is not the first child to die from falling furniture, 
but the Becks hope that they can help prevent this tragedy from 
happening to another child. The Consumer Product Safety Commission 
estimates that 8,000 to 10,000 children are injured each year from 
furniture that falls or tips or from items on top of furniture or 
shelves that fall off onto the child. An average of six children 
tragically die each year, as Meghan did.
  Through a Web site titled Meghan's Hope, her parents are bringing 
together fellow American families who have suffered pain from the loss 
or injury of a child to spread the word about furniture safety. The 
mission of Meghan's Hope is to make available resources and information 
regarding furniture safety.
  Via the Web site, parents from around the country have a place to 
share stories, thoughts and ideas with one another. Thanks to Ralph and 
Kimberly Beck's efforts, awareness is rising; and more parents are 
taking note of the importance of securing furniture around the house.
  The Web site offers several helpful suggestions for families. These 
include:
  Securing furniture to the walls to prevent tip-overs. This includes 
dressers, bookcases, entertainment cabinets, TVs, toy boxes, large 
appliances, or any piece of furniture with shelves or drawers that can 
be climbed on;
  Purchasing furniture ties or brackets. These should be screwed into 
both the wall, into a beam, and the furniture itself. If a wood beam is 
not accessible, use mollies or toggle bolts to give added strength;
  Placing TVs on low, stable units with large bases and as far back as 
possible in the shelf. Secure all TV sets to the wall. Devices are sold 
for this purpose;
  Anchoring freestanding bookcases, no matter how large or small, to 
the walls;
  Not placing heavy or other items of interest to a child on top of the 
furniture or higher than a comfortable reach for the smallest child so 
as not to entice them to climb for it;
  Putting heavy items on the lowest shelf or drawer;
  And sharing this information with everyone you know.
  In addition, there are things the furniture and retail industries can 
do, and the Becks have developed some excellent ideas. They include:
  Encouraging all stores that sell furniture to also provide literature 
on furniture safety and to sell the safety straps;
  Encouraging all furniture manufacturers to voluntarily include 
warning labels on furniture and information on the dangers of furniture 
tip-overs, recommending that the buyer secure the piece to the wall 
with the proper restraining devices. Ideally, the manufacturer would 
provide this information with the furniture until safety standard 
legislation is developed;
  Encouraging stores that sell child safety products to also sell 
furniture safety straps. Many do not carry them, including large 
department stores and home improvement stores;
  And encouraging physicians and child safety instructors to discuss 
furniture safety with parents.
  Mr. Speaker, through this terrible loss, the Beck family has shown 
great strength and determination to spread

[[Page H1854]]

their message. As parents we have an awesome responsibility to protect 
our children, and we must not take this responsibility lightly. While I 
am deeply saddened by the loss of Meghan Beck, I commend the entire 
family for their efforts in spreading their message.
  I urge my colleagues to visit the Becks' Web site at 
www.meghanshope.org. There they can learn more about the important 
issue of furniture safety and what can be done to prevent more 
tragedies from occurring.
  I know that our colleague, the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. 
Schwartz), is also concerned about this issue; and I look forward to 
working with her closely to see what Congress can do to help.
  I am certain that the entire House of Representatives joins me in 
sending their deepest condolences to the Beck family and in thanking 
them for their effort on behalf of our children's safety.

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