Child safety advocacy

He has a plan and I have a purpose.

Reese was sixteen months old when she swallowed a button battery. We fought for Reese’s Law so other families would be spared that loss. Now we’re taking on the other hidden hazards in your home.

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Recalled more than twice a week

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Reese's Law signed (Public Law 117-171)

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Federal law changed by one family

What we do

Reese's Purpose is the small nonprofit that changed federal law. We track every children's product recall, we advocate for the policies that prevent the next one, and we help families spot the hidden hazards in their homes before anyone gets hurt.

Black eye icon inside a simple outlined eye shape on a white background

Track every recall

Children's products are recalled more than twice a week. We index every one, in English and Spanish, and we send a note when something dangerous is in your house.

Black scales of justice icon on a white background

Change the laws

Reese's Law (Public Law 117-171) passed in 2022. It requires every product that uses a button cell or coin battery to have a secured battery compartment and a child-safety warning on the package.

House with magnifying glass and check mark icon

Help families spot hazards

Button batteries. Furniture tip-over. Window blinds. Water beads. Infant sleep. We name what is dangerous, and we point you to the parents and partners who know it best.

Why Reese's Purpose

Reese Elizabeth Hamsmith was eighteen months old when she died from injuries caused by a button battery she swallowed. Her family built Reese's Purpose so other families would not have to learn this the hard way. We pushed for the federal law that requires manufacturers to secure battery compartments. We worked with industry to develop a safer battery. We publish a free monthly recall digest. We are still pushing on every gap that remains.


If this page helped you, please consider giving in Reese's memory. Your gift keeps this guide free and helps us reach the parents who do not know yet.

We are not the same nonprofit we were in 2021.

When Trista Hamsmith founded Reese's Purpose, we had one job: get button batteries out of unsecured compartments. We did that. Federal law now requires battery doors that take a tool or two simultaneous hand movements to open. Energizer's new Ultimate Child Shield battery, launched in May 2026, is the four-year outcome of the industry work we drove.

Our efforts are actively curbing the button battery threat, but the hidden-hazard problem continues to demand our attention.. Furniture tips over. Window blind cords still strangle. Water beads still swell inside small bodies. Recalls still arrive twice a week and most families never hear.

We are spending the next chapter of Reese's Purpose helping every family find the hazard before the hazard finds them.

Two children sitting outdoors in autumn, smiling beside pumpkins in warm sunlight.

Reese's Warriors

Families Reese’s Purpose has stood beside, in their own words.

Reese's Law

On August 16, 2022, federal law changed because of Reese. We named it after her.

Public Law 117-171 requires every product that uses a button cell or coin battery to have a secured battery compartment and a child-safety warning on the package. It is the law in the United States. It exists because Reese died, and because her family refused to let her death be the end of it.

Give in Reese's memory

Reese's Purpose runs on monthly partners. Twenty-five dollars a month keeps the recall digest free for every family who finds it. Fifty dollars a month funds the advocacy that becomes law. One hundred dollars a month brings the work to a parent who would not have known otherwise.

Child reaching up toward a white high chair with colorful stacked blocks on the seat

Reese's Notes

Every month we write down what changed: the recalls that matter for your house, the laws and standards we are pushing, and the families whose stories drive the work. Some notes are practical, like what to check before bath time or back to school. Some are personal, like Reese's birthday and testimony from fellow mom's and child safety warriors. All of them are written so a busy parent can act on them.

Parents for Window Blind Safety Lab Tested Mom Approved seal

The silent danger: why cordless window coverings save lives

By Linda Kaiser • October 7, 2026
Learn why cordless window coverings are vital for child safety. Advocate for safer homes with Reese's Purpose.
October is Safe Sleep Month

In honor of Safe Sleep Month: safe sleep is simple, but the marketplace is not

By Reese's Purpose • October 7, 2026
Understand safe sleep practices for infants. Advocate for child safety & learn about unsafe products. Join us in promoting safe sleep!
Trista Hamsmith on stage with fellow panelists at the 2026 ICPHSO International Symposium in Brussels, Belgium

Staying at the table: Reese's Purpose in Brussels

By Reese's Purpose • October 7, 2026
Learn how Reese's Purpose promotes child safety through collaboration at the ICPHSO Symposium. Join us in advocating for safer products.

Stay close

We send a note when something changes. New legislation. A serious recall. A new partner. A milestone in the work. No spam. Just a word directly from us.

Suspect a child has swallowed a button battery?

Time matters. A button battery lodged in a child's esophagus can cause serious tissue damage in two hours. Do not wait for symptoms. Call the National Battery Ingestion Hotline immediately, and go to a hospital emergency department that has both an operating room and X-ray capability.

Button Battery Safety

Poison Control

National Battery Ingestion Hotline