TERRE HAUTE —
Terre Haute residents set an unofficial world record Monday night while making a lot of noise on the Indiana State University campus.
More than 300 people literally howled at the full moon for more than one minute around 10:20 p.m. on Dede Plaza.
James Wallace II, organizer of the record-setting howling event, said 304 or 305 people took part, which may have either broken or established a world record, he said.
“Start thinking about lunacy,” Wallace told the large crowd, which included children and adults, a little before they started their one-minute howl. The crowd faced the full moon, which was high above ISU campus buildings in the eastern sky.
The event was designed to raise awareness for childhood safety. Wallace organized a much smaller howling event on New Year’s Eve of 2009 downtown.
“We’re here to support youth organizations in the Wabash Valley,” Wallace told the crowd. Youth organizations taking part included CHANCES for Indiana Youth, Ryves Youth Center at Etling Hall and the Terre Haute Children’s Museum. Several Boy Scouts from Troop 22 of Ryves Youth Center were at the event.
Wallace, whose granddaughter was badly injured in an auto accident in which she was not riding in a child safety seat, wants to raise awareness for childhood safety and to push for stronger penalties for those who violate child safety seat laws.
“We feel that the laws are not strong enough,” Wallace said as the large crowd was still forming early in the evening. “We’d like to see jail time [in the most serious cases] if at all possible,” he said.
In many cases, the penalty for not using a child safety seat is a $25 fine, he said. “Our children are worth more than $25,” Wallace said.
Motor vehicle accidents are the No. 1 cause of death for children ages 2-14, said Brandon Halleck, executive director of CHANCES for Indiana Youth, who was also at the howling. In addition, nine out of 10 child safety seats are improperly installed, he said.
CHANCES for Indiana Youth sponsors child safety seat clinics and can sometimes replace expired or worn-out safety seats, Halleck said. Anyone wanting more information or a safety seat inspection can call CHANCES at (812) 232-5190, he said.
“People need to remember those kids [not in safety seats] in a car are going to be moving” in the event of an accident, said Doug Wright, a father of two grown children who attended the howling event with his wife, Francis. The Wrights decided to attend the event because it sounded like fun, and “it’s for a good cause,” he said.
In order to qualify for a world record, Wallace said the crowd needed to have at least 250 people and howl for one minute straight. The crowd topped 300, he said, and the howling continued for several minutes after the minute elapsed.
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
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