The Bedford County, Virginia, Sheriff’s Office formed one of the first Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces in the nation in 1998.  With the development of ICAC, Sheriff Mike Brown saw the need for a preventative measure that would help children avoid falling victim to online sexual predators. The best defense was to educate kids through Internet Safety Education.  The Safe Surfin’ Foundation was formed and is a 501c3 non-profit Cyber Safety and Responsibility educational initiative dedicated not only to protecting youth from those who would do them harm, but pro-actively educating them in the safe and responsible use of today’s ever-changing technology. In 2008, the partnership with Moose International was formed.

 Through the support of the Moose International family, we have raised public awareness for the need of Internet safety education, and have promoted the availability of these educational materials to schools, libraries, and law enforcement. Moose members have and continue to sponsor educational programs at their Lodges and have reached out to other civic groups throughout their communities. The Moose/SSF partnership continues to present numerous opportunities for positive publicity for the fraternity with our nationwide involvement as we strive to protect children and sharing this important information to as many communities as possible.