Button Battery Awareness Day: Swap It. Secure It. Store It. Dispose It Safely.

June 12 is not just a date on the calendar.

It is Button Battery Awareness Day, a recognized international day of awareness, and the day Reese's Purpose was founded in honor of Reese. It is a reminder that this is not a local issue or a rare issue. It is a global one, affecting families in every country where button batteries are used.

And that is exactly why this message matters:

Not fear. Not overwhelm.

Action.

This year, we are focusing on four simple steps that every household can take:

Swap it. Secure it. Store it. Dispose it safely.

Swap It: Choose Safer Power Where It Matters Most

Every home depends on button batteries. The goal is not to eliminate them; it is to be intentional about how they enter your home.

When replacing batteries, consider upgrading to safer, more thoughtfully designed options like the Energizer Ultimate Child Shield line from Energizer.

These batteries were developed with child safety in mind, including improved packaging and design considerations that help reduce risk in everyday household environments where small batteries are commonly used.

Small upgrades matter. Especially when multiplied across the hundreds of devices in a typical home.

Secure It: The 15-Minute Home Check

Most parents would be surprised how many devices in their home contain button batteries, and how many of those compartments are not fully secure.

Take 15 minutes this month and walk through your home:

• Do battery compartments fully close and lock?
• Are screws missing or stripped?
• Can a child open them without tools?
• Do any covers shift, loosen, or pop open when touched?

If yes, fix it immediately.

Tape it. Tighten it. Replace the device if needed.

Assumption is the risk here. Verification is protection.

Store It: Out of Sight, Out of Reach, Always

Spare button batteries are one of the most overlooked risks in the home.

They are small, silent, and often left in places children can access within seconds: drawers, purses, counters, nightstands, or junk containers.

Safer storage looks like:

• Locked or elevated storage for all spare batteries
• Keeping batteries in original packaging until use
• Never leaving loose batteries accessible
• Immediate and safe disposal of used batteries

If a child can reach it, it is not stored safely enough.

Dispose It Safely: The Step Most People Miss

Because Button Battery Awareness Day is now an international day of awareness, this final step matters just as much as the others.

Used button batteries are not harmless once "done." They still carry risk if left loose in homes, trash bins, or accessible spaces.

Safe disposal means:

• Never leaving used batteries on counters or in open trash
• Keeping them in a sealed container until disposal
• Following local recycling or hazardous waste guidelines where available
• Dropping them off at designated battery recycling locations when possible

Safe homes do not end at use. They end at disposal.

Why June 12 Exists

This day exists because too many families learned too late what most people never see coming.

At Reese's Purpose, June 12 is both remembrance and responsibility. It is a reminder that awareness only matters when it becomes action inside real homes.

And prevention is rarely one big change.

It is a series of small decisions:

• What you choose when replacing a battery
• Whether you fix a loose compartment
• Where you store something after use
• How you dispose of what you no longer need

Those are the moments that change outcomes.

A Simple Challenge for This Month

Before June 12 ends, do this:

Walk your home and identify every device that uses a button battery.

Then ask:

• Is it secure?
• Is it accessible?
• Do I know where every spare battery is?
• Am I disposing of used batteries safely?

That's it.

Not perfection. Just awareness turned into action.

Download this Guide(English & Spanish)