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Ridgefield Mom's Website Honors Son, Calls Attention To Dangers Of Hot Cars

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. -- A mother in Ridgefield has created a website to honor her 15-month-old son who died in a hot car and to raise awareness in the hope of preventing similar tragedies. 

A screenshot of the homepage of The Gift of Ben.com.

A screenshot of the homepage of The Gift of Ben.com.

Photo Credit: The Gift of Ben.com

Lindsey Rogers-Seitz started the website called "The Gift of Ben" in memory of her son, who died July 7 after he was left in a hot car by his father, Kyle Seitz, while he was at work. 

"This website is only a medium for Ben's Voice and an outlet for me to effectuate his purpose through reaching others to raise public awareness of this grave danger," Rogers-Seitz writes on the blog.

The website includes a variety of photos of Ben and inspiration quotes, including "i carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart)," from e.e. cummings. 

"In order to respect my family's privacy and that of other parties involved at this time, I will not be discussing any events of July 7th involving my husband (other than publicly available information) until a later date and then only to continue to raise public awareness, nor will I discuss at this time any theories of causation or responsibility for these tragic events or other events that have occurred this summer," she writes on the website.

"I want to thank all parties involved for respecting my family's privacy and grief, while continuing day-to-day objectives in a reasonable and thoughtful manner."

No charges have been filed in connection with the incident, which remains under police investigation. 

Rogers-Seitz also thanks the community of Ridgefield and others around the nation who have offered support in the wake of her son's death. 

She also thanks Janette Fennell and Amber Rollins at KidsAndCars.org. The group seeks to educate and focus public awareness on the dangers involving kids and cars. The group seeks to pass state laws, propose federal policy change and redesign motor vehicles to make them safer for children to prevent injury and death.

In a statement issued for National Heat Stroke Prevention Day, which was July 31, KidsAndCars.org said 18 children have already died in hot cars this year.

"After the tragic death of my son, I began researching as much as I could to try to wrap my brain around how and why this happens to people like my husband - we are responsible, conscientious, loving parents. We could be you, your neighbors, your best friends," Rogers-Seitz said in the statement from KidsAndCars.org.

"Ben was cherished so, and losing him in this manner has brought a profound grief. We realize that we cannot allow others to feel this pain needlessly, so we are urging automobile and car seat manufacturers, legislators, regulators, health and safety experts, victims and other interested parties to come together to quickly find the most effective solution before more lives are lost."

Visit The Gift of Ben website here. 

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