Eddie Worth, past president of Virginia’s Loyal Order of the Moose, stepped off the airplane that landed in the mist that shrouded the Indianapolis International Airport on March 3 and called the “Virginian Review.”
He had flown from Virginia to address the Indiana Moose Assoc. about the Safe Surfin’ Foundation that was founded in Virginia in 1998 by law enforcement spearheaded by Sheriff Mike Brown of Bedford.
The Loyal Order of the Moose was founded in Louisville, Ky. in 1888. The fraternal order and service organization is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit, and Paula Crance, president of the Clifton Forge Moose Lodge 1683, had notified the newspaper about the importance of the work Safe Surfin’ is performing in Va. and other states.
Crance met Worth in Virginia Beach while representing the Clifton Forge Moose Lodge, and she notified the newspaper concerning the value Safe Surfin’ can provide to the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools that was formed on July 1, 2022, as a result of the consolidation of Covington City Schools and Alleghany County Public Schools.
During the telephone conversation, Worth revealed that he has contacted the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools in hopes the new school system will incorporate the lesson plans that the Safe Surfin’ Foundation has developed, ones aimed at educating students about the danger of internet predators who would like to harm them.
Worth remarked, “I have contacted the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools, and it is my hope that the school system will incorporate our lesson plans.”
He added, “During the past six years, we have developed lesson plans for students concerning internet safety.”
Safe Surfin’ has also developed an internet safety peer-to-peer program that enables upper-class students to learn preventive ways of navigating the internet to safely defend against sexual predators and then arm the younger students with the skills to keep them safe.
Worth revealed, “We have put together our educational program in conjunction with the National White Collar Crime Center located in Morgantown, W.Va.”
Having graduated from Natural Bridge High School in Rockbridge County, Va. in 1968, Worth served a short stint with the FBI in Washington, D.C. before he obtained a position with Aramark, a food service company based in Altavista, Va.
Following his work there, he was hired by Ecolab Global Communications Center, a Fortune 500 company based in Saint Paul, Minn. His 30 years of employment there enabled him to develop a set of skills that placed him as a consultant in front of many business leaders around the world.
In Roanoke, the day before his flight to Indianapolis, Worth was interviewed by a reporter on WDBJ Television concerning Safe Surfin’s quest to prevent cyberbullying, sexting and sex trafficking.
Worth said, “We are working now to add a prevention of sex trafficking to our cyber safety program.”
Safe Surfin’ is based in Floyd, Va., and the organization is working with more than 6,000 students in several states across the nation.
“The Moose is one of our largest supporters,” Worth concluded.
Safe Surfin’ educates parents and students about internet crimes against children and takes a proactive approach to arm students with the knowledge that will prevent them from becoming victims of cybercriminals.
Safe Surfin’ Foundation’s headquarters is located at 202 E. Main St., Suite 9, Floyd, Va. 24091. The telephone number is (540) 855-7432.
HB1575, a bill introduced by Delegate Wendell Walker of Lynchburg, has been amended by a House subcommittee and has passed both the Virginia Senate and Virginia House of Delegates.
Should Governor Glenn Youngkin sign the bill, it will require each public school in Va. to incorporate cyber safety into its curriculum.
The Safe Surfin’ Foundation stands ready to assist school districts to meet the requirements set forth in HB1575 should it become Virginia law.
