Columnist Susan Snyder: At KNCV, youth is classic

Tuesday, April 27, 2004 | 8:21 a.m.

If it's not quite 1 p.m. when you read this, then go flip on the radio.

Quick!

Tune to public radio station KNCV 89.7-FM and listen as some young musicians from the Nevada School of the Arts showcase their talents on John Clare's "Live in Studio One" classical music show that starts at 1 p.m.

Selections are to include pieces by Bach, Haydn and George Gershwin. The students will play in quartets or solo. They are violinists Natalie Cheung and Scott Jackson, both 18; Emily Holden, 17; James Reinarz, 16; Jeremy Rhizor, 15, and Paulina Haduong, 12. Reinarz also will play viola and Matthew Heenan, 15, is to be featured on cello.

The Nevada School of the Arts serves students as young as 3 and adults of any age. It helps support scholarships and financial assistance to students through events such as its annual Renaissance fair in November.

The Light up Their Eyes Foundation is sponsoring free eyesight screenings for infants and children May 8.

The foundation, a project of Southern Nevada Lions clubs, will check sight and the health of eyes for children 6 months and older. Screenings are from 7 a.m. to midnight at Pioneer Loan, 520 N. Eastern Ave., in Las Vegas.

Youngsters identified as needing further examinations, glasses or surgery will be referred to the appropriate Lions Club committee for assistance.

While most of us enjoyed some relaxation and sunny weather Sunday, Jody Esposito e-mailed her to-do list.

Esposito's 5-year-old son Michael died in 2001 after being hospitalized for heat exposure, which he suffered when he crawled into a car trunk while playing hide-and-seek. Esposito has since dedicated her life to educating adults about being diligent when it comes to children and motor vehicles.

Her list is one of incidents involving children left in cars over the past couple of weeks:

Parents of a 5-month-old Maryland infant left him alone in a vehicle while they shopped.

A Colorado woman left her 5-year-old daughter alone in a running vehicle, which was stolen. She was unharmed when recovered.

A 20-month-old North Carolina girl died after her grandmother forgot she'd left the infant in the car.

A 2-year-old California boy also was recovered unharmed after someone stole the running vehicle in which his mother had left him.

A 9-month-old Vermont infant was left alone in a car. A 5-year-old Utah girl's father locked her in the trunk of his car. A 2 1/2-month-old infant in Illinois was left inside a running car that was stolen.

A Las Vegas mother left her 8-month-old twins alone in the car while she shopped. A Las Vegas man left his 1-year-old child in the car while he went into a convenience store. A woman locked her 2-year-old daughter in the car while she shopped in Henderson.

Esposito says information on what to do or how to help can be found at www.kidsandcars.org. But it would seem her preferred solution is pretty clear:

Stop it.