06/19/2026
LELAND TOWNSHIP FIRE & RESCUE BECOMES THE FIRST "SAFE SLEEP" CERTIFIED AGENCY IN LEELANAU, BENZIE, AND GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTIES
Earlier this month, The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services certified our agency as a "safe sleep" agency. What does this mean? Leland Township Fire & Rescue personnel are properly trained in infant safe sleep education and, as a trusted source of information, understand how to provide that information to families within our community.
As part of our Community Risk Reduction (CRR) efforts, department personnel may encounter families with infants during EMS responses, home visits, public education events, or other community interactions. This training helps personnel provide consistent, evidence-based education aimed at reducing sleep-related infant deaths.
DID YOU KNOW? A Michigan baby dies every 2 ‐ 3 days due to sleep‐related causes. Sleep-related infant deaths are those where something in the baby's sleep environment (blankets, pillows, people, pets, etc.) likely contributed to the death.
You can learn more information about the safe sleep program by visiting Michigan.gov/SafeSleep
"I am truly proud of Sasha Moore, our Community Risk Reduction Coordinator, and her efforts to make us more educated in the ways we can reduce risk. By looking at the map and the list (see attached photos) you can see there are less than 35 Safe Sleep certified fire or EMS agencies, in the State of Michigan, so this was not a small endeavor that she undertook. You don't become Safe Sleep certified without a motivated risk reduction leader and the buy in of every department member" says Fire Chief Dan Besson, adding " This is another shining example of the incredible pride we have serving the community!".
