Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 20, 1994 TAG: 9410200064
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: 2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
It's like wearing knee braces and other equipment to prevent injuries on the football field, said Bostic, who retired earlier this year.
He came to this conclusion after several knee injuries that stopped once he began wearing supports.
Bostic, whose father was a police officer, was in Pulaski County on Wednesday to speak to the Pulaski Police Department during a brunch and formal inspection.
Bostic said he did not use a seat belt when he was growing up.
"I was one of these guys that was bullet-proof," he said.
He thought he was invincible on the field, too, until a serious knee injury three years ago.
It was while he was recovering that he made the connection that using seat belts to prevent car accident injuries made as much sense as using braces to prevent further injury on the field.
The importance of buckling up was further driven home, Bostic said, when a neighbor's child died after being thrown from a car during a wreck.
He encouraged the officers to set a good example for youngsters and the community by wearing their seat belts.
"You're role models. We're a society that likes to copy people," Bostic said.
Bostic began working with the state's Department of Motor Vehicles several years ago to promote safety. He usually visited the area with Gary Clark, the former Washington Redskins' receiver who grew up in Pulaski County. Clark is now with the Arizona Cardinals and did not make this trip, leaving himself open for Bostic to make a few good-natured jibes at his former teammate.
The two dressed for games beside each other for years. Clark may well be the only man with two feet and 9,000 shoes, Bostic said.
Bostic's remarks came after a brunch catered by the Renaissance Restaurant. Before the meal, Pulaski Police Chief Herb Cooley conducted a formal inspection of 17 members of his department. VFW Post 1184 presented the flags and Pulaski County High School student Chris Stevens played the "National Anthem" on the trumpet.
by CNB