“We don't get to come together as a community often enough to talk about things that every American cares about,” said Florida Bicycle Association Executive Director Kelly Morphy. “Nobody disagrees that we should make our neighborhoods safer, but we often don't get to come together in a venue like this to talk with other people about it and learn.”

When tragedy occurs, it serves as a reminder that public safety isn’t just a line item on a local or state budget, but an obligation, State Rep. Leonard Spencer of District 45, one of several speakers, told the crowd. 

“It’s a promise that we’re going to look out for each other,” said the Democrat who represents Windermere. “That we will prepare, we will respond, and most importantly, we’re going to care for each other. Not just in moments of crisis, but every single day.” 

Safety in all forms 

Expo attendees heard from various public-safety experts, including Morphy, who provided information about her organization’s services that help ensure the safety and accessibility of bicyclists and pedestrians.

“Unfortunately, in Florida, we are one of the deadliest states for people walking and biking and doing nothing more nefarious than trying to get where they're going, using the most efficient means available to them,” Morphy said. 

Florida ranks number one in the nation for cycling traffic fatalities with 222 reported in 2022, the most recent year available, according to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Morphy’s association offers educational programs like Safer Students, which provides grants to elementary and high schools to use free online bicycle and roadway safety lessons, plus other resources that Morphy hopes will inform young and “still impressionable drivers.”

“They hopefully have not developed bad habits yet,” Morphy said. “We would love for the next generation of drivers in Florida to be the safest and the most aware of people on bicycles and people walking so that everyone can get where they're going safely.”

Also on hand were “animal ambassadors” and their human companions. Like Eric Rivera, the wildlife and outreach specialist from Oakland Nature Preserve who explained how to safely co-exist alongside Florida’s wild animals while Mabel, the corn snake, weaved through his hands. A request to pet Mabel was turned down because she was "feeling shy." They really are more scared of humans.

While Florida is home to a variety of wildlife, such as its 46 native snake species, only six of which are venomous, an animal doesn’t have to spew venom to be dangerous. Rivera said residents who touch or interact directly with any kind of wild animal could find themselves in a dicey situation and should do their best to avoid interactions by not feeding local wildlife or attempting to pet them. 

“It's a healthy thing to, at least, be respectful about what's outside when it comes to the coyotes, gators, snakes, all that fun stuff,” Rivera said. “If you just do your thing, they do their thing. When there's contact with each other, just be respectful about it, and be informed about it, especially here in Florida.” 

Wildlife may come closer to suburban areas while fleeing development or in search of food, Rivera said, but residents can ensure both the animal’s safety and their own by limiting interactions and respecting those they encounter. 

Animals — domesticated animals — have a role to play in maintaining mental health. Mary Tench came to the expo with her yellow Labrador, Mr. Wright, a therapy dog with nearly 1,000 service hours logged at Orlando Health. Smiling as a passerby stopped to give Mr. Wright a belly rub, Tench said therapy dogs help eliminate stress and provide emotional support through positive interactions.

Simply put, Tench said, Mr. Wright makes people feel better.

“What's interesting to note is that when we go to the hospitals to help with the patients, [therapy dogs] actually help the team members at the hospital,” she said. “If we go to a school, they help the teachers, not just the students … It's really an awesome way to give back.”

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Orange County Fire Rescue paramedic firefighter Chantall Newell and recruit Emily Cardona told attendees they do far more than fight fires. 

“We’re not only putting out the fires or saving cats out of trees, we also like to serve our community,” Newell said. “We also run plenty of EMS calls, more EMS calls than fire calls, so we definitely worry about the well-being, safety and health of our community. That's where we play a big part, we like to come out and just show that we work in a lot of different aspects.” 

According to the most recent Orange County Fire Rescue fiscal year report, dispatch units received 139,361 total calls in 2023. Of that number, 114,775 were calls for EMS while 18,684 were calls for fire services. 

Besides displaying their uniforms and gear, the fire rescue professionals offered interactive experiences like an extrication station to show how they save victims trapped in vehicles, a ladder truck for high-point rescues, fire safety simulations and even an area where Cardona helped attendees blast away at traffic cones with the truck’s hose line. 

Connecting the community ‍

Longtime safety advocate Linda Sibley, District 1’s representative on the Orange County Citizens Safety Corps. Council and a former Citizens Advisory Corps. Chair, developed the idea for the expo. She said it originated partly from how difficult it can be to share safety and services information with different communities in the unincorporated Orange County area.

“Because we're exploding in [population] growth, what I saw happening is that new residents as well as residents that have actually been here a long time were just totally unaware of what resources we have available here within Orange County,” she said.

Sibley, honored at the expo as District 1 Citizen of the Month, knew she wanted to create an event that would bridge that informational divide. 

“This was something I've been mulling about for a couple of years,” she said. “After the first of the year, the commissioner and I spoke and said we were ready to roll out and try the first one. We had no idea how many [vendors] would even want to be part of this, and then we had 50 here today.”

Horizon High School student volunteers, like freshman Cameron DeSanto, said he enjoyed talking with different community service providers and believed the expo would continue to grow.

“I mean, this is a great event,” he said. “As more word gets out about it, I'm sure more people will keep coming in the future.”

Fellow freshman Ishaan Krishna said the expo also allowed students to make their own community connections by meeting local first responders and government leaders. Senior Gwendolyn Wirbelg echoed that sentiment. She said she appreciated that lawmakers like Spencer spoke with them about safety legislation, like House Bill 501, which would ban handheld cell phone use while driving.

“It impacts students at our school, and he was very open-minded to the students’ opinions and talking about the different bills that I've been following,” Wirlbelg said. 

Families, including Lori and Jack Banas accompanied by their 6-year-old granddaughter Savannah, wearing a plastic firefighter’s helmet, also came to explore what the expo was all about.

“We’re here to find out what the community is offering to us in reference to safety and keeping us safe,” Lori Banas said. “So far, the coolest thing is all of the participating people in our community, be it the police officers, fire department or pet rescuers.” 

Though he’d initially come to discuss a traffic safety issue with Wilson, Jack Banas said they enjoyed the expo even if their granddaughter didn’t want to come. 

“I brought my granddaughter to check and see everything, and she’s like, I don’t know if I want to go, I don’t want to go,” he said. “Well, she’s loving it — so what they did worked out here.”

Sibley said there are plans for a second expo next year, with the potential for it to become a countywide event in the future. But, for now, she’s just happy the first one was a success. 

“I'm excited to actually have experimented with this to see if it would even work, and it's obvious it can,” she said. “Going forward, hopefully residents will share this with their friends and family and say, When you hear about this event, mark your calendar because it's well worth going out there to visit.”

Savannah also appeared to consider the event a success. She paused before sharing with VoxPopuli her favorite part of her day at the expo with her grandparents.

“All the candy,” she grinned. “And all the beautiful snakes.”