Articles
Invention Puts Emergency Info on Shoes
Alton - The Telegraph - Monday, February 9, 2004
By Dave Whaley
Necessity was the mother of invention for Lila Shepley. The Glendale, Mo., woman has developed the "AwareAbouts" identification tag that can be threaded through the lace of a sneaker and provides emergency contacts or vital medial information.
"I got the idea when my son, Drake, was 4 years old and went into anaphylactic shock on Christmas Eve," Shepley said. "He had a bad reaction to paprika and pineapple. I was concerned what might happen if he collapsed in the hall at school."
Shepley said that Drake didn't want to wear a bracelet or a necklace, so she thought of the shoe as the next best place. Shepley and another mother, Lisa Beatty, formed Constructive Concepts Inc. and spent two years researching and meeting with manufacturers.
"We came up with a two-plied plastic that won't wear away," Shepley said. Space is limited to three lines of information, with 18 characters allowed on each line. Allergies, blood types and telephone numbers can be displayed to help other parents, school personnel and first responders.
"We didn't want any names and addresses, especially for children," Shepley said. "Most of the ones we've sold have been for specific medical conditions, but there are other reasons people might want them."
The AwareAbouts tags come in 12 colorful designs and can also be attached to Velcro shoe straps.
"No parent can be with their child 24 hours a day, and the AwareAbouts ID tag is an excellent way for a child to carry information that can be used by police if the child is in a serious situation, " said Sgt. Joe Laramie of the Glendale Police Department. "They work well for joggers and walkers, too."
Shepley and Beatty received a utility patent in 2002 for the tags. Since then, they have been selling the tags at www.awareabouts.com. They will soon be available in catalogs and stores.
