ELYRIA, Ohio — Installed on school playgrounds, “Buddy Benches” are intended to foster friendships among children. Each one provides kids a way to identify children who need a peer to play with at recess, while encouraging those already engaged in play to invite others to join.
Buddy Benches at four Elyria elementary schools, and accompanying specialized training for students, are being made possible through a $4,000 donation by Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, LLC. On Oct. 20, Bendix joined 400 students at one of those schools, Franklin Elementary, in an anti-bullying assembly and ribbon cutting for the school’s new Buddy Bench.
The company is supporting the efforts of Connecting for Kids, which organized the Franklin Elementary event and is also implementing Beyond the Bench Training, a unique program the nonprofit group developed to accompany Buddy Benches.
Bendix, the North American leader in the development and manufacture of active safety and braking solutions for commercial vehicles, is offering support through its Local Care program. During the assembly, members of the Bendix Local Care Committee distributed “Be a Buddy” bracelets to all students, reminding them of the important role they each play in making others feel welcome and accepted during recess.
“Supporting our community—including its youngest members—is among our most deeply held values at Bendix,” said Maria Gutierrez, Bendix’s director of corporate responsibility and sustainability. “We are thrilled for this opportunity to join efforts with Connecting for Kids. Their training program and the Buddy Benches are a wonderful way to encourage positive, welcoming interactions among schoolchildren, and we’re proud to contribute to this good work.”
The Beyond the BenchSM Training program by Connecting for Kids uses role-playing scenarios that teach children ways to use the Buddy Bench to make connections with peers. Many schools across the country have installed a Buddy Bench. Without proper training, however, students often aren’t sure how to use the bench, which can then lose its meaning and become just another place to sit on the playground. Through the Beyond the Bench Training program, students also learn techniques to improve social and conflict-resolution skills.
In addition to Franklin Elementary, the three other Elyria schools receiving Beyond the Bench Training and installation of solid wood Buddy Benches are McKinley Elementary, Oakwood Elementary, and Windsor Elementary.
“We are grateful for the generous support of Bendix,” said Sarah Rintamaki, executive director of Connecting for Kids. “Our friends there understand community involvement—and they are passionate about it. With the Buddy Benches and training, a large number of children are coming out winners.”
Bendix’s Connecting for Kids support is part of Local Care within the Bendix Corporate Responsibility program. The Local Care program fuels the company’s ongoing dedication to supporting communities and aims to grow active social involvement among employees through leadership and project management experience.
Year-round, Bendix employees throughout North America donate their time, talent, and financial support to a wide range of community service programs, partnering with charitable and philanthropic organizations.
Connecting for Kids offers education and support for families with questions or concerns about their child, with a focus on children from birth through age 12. A formal diagnosis, such as an autism spectrum disorder or ADHD, is not required to receive information or participate in Connecting for Kids’ programs.
Resources are available for a number of concerns, including but not limited to anxiety, attention, food allergies, sensory, and speech-language. Families can attend innovative, free programming and learn how to improve their child’s behavior, social skills, and more. Connecting for Kids also offers support groups, a parent mentor program, and numerous resources to empower parents to enable their child to reach his or her full potential.
About Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, LLC.
Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, a member of the Knorr-Bremse Group, develops and supplies leading-edge active safety technologies, energy management solutions, and air brake charging and control systems and components under the Bendix brand name for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, tractors, trailers, buses, and other commercial vehicles throughout North America. As an industry pioneer, employing more than 3,000 people, Bendix is driven to deliver solutions for improved vehicle safety, performance, and overall operating cost.
Bendix is headquartered in Elyria, Ohio, with manufacturing plants in Bowling Green, Kentucky; Huntington, Indiana; North Aurora, Illinois; and Acuña, Mexico. For more information, call 800-AIR-BRAKE (800-247-2725) or visit www.bendix.com. Follow Bendix on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Bendix_CVS. Log on and learn from the Bendix experts at www.brake-school.com.
