Each second-grade student in Yankton received a new bike helmet on April 10 thanks to the annual bike helmet giveaway sponsored by Yankton Medical Clinic, P.C. and Yankton Rotary Club. This annual event has been helping Yankton youth be safe for 22 years.

The students gathered at Yankton High School auditorium and learned about bike safety from the Yankton Police Department and Dr. David Withrow who used a watermelon to demonstrate what can happen to your head in an accident. “I can fix a broken bone or a scraped knee, but I can’t fix a broken head.” Withrow encouraged kids to always wear their helmet on every bike ride.

233 helmets were fitted by volunteers from Yankton Medical Clinic, P.C., Yankton Rotary Club, and University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine students (Yankton Campus) in less than an hour. Yankton Police Department officers will reward youth if “caught” wearing their bike helmet while riding, in thanks to a partnership with McDonald’s of Yankton.