Like any good mother, Deborah Headden Lowe wants to ensure her children are safe from harm, and perhaps never more so than when traveling in a vehicle.

So when she saw her 7-month-old daughter Gracie fidgeting and crying when placed in her car seat during a typically hot Arizona summer day, she immediately worried about what could be causing the discomfort.

“My daughter was just too hot in her car seat and the belt buckle burned her leg,” Headden Lowe recalled, noting how the burn was serious enough to cause alarm.

After diligently searching in vain for a solution to help cool down child seats from the scorching interior temperatures of vehicles reaching upward of 185 degrees, Headden Lowe found few options available that would do the trick.

It was then the Orangeburg native decided to take her skills as a nurse and her education received at the Orangeburg School of Nursing and South Carolina State University and put it into practical use.

“I remember while going to college right there in Orangeburg and wondering why in the world did I have to take chemistry, English, human development, anatomy and all those science courses,” she said.

Little did she know the education received would pave the way for her to start her own business, BabyBeeCool, and invent what has become a nationally sought after BabyBeeCool Car Seat Cooler Pad.

The pad, which was has been on the market since 2002, is made with an insulated fabric barrier containing two water-repellent lined pockets for the placement of two reusable ice packs.

The cooler pad, which has received The Toy Man seal of approval and meets all safety regulations, has sold like hotcakes.

“This year we will sell thousands,” she said, noting that the Web site -- www.babybeecool.com -- has spawned sales throughout the United States.

The product is currently sold in retail stores in Arizona but can be purchased from the Web site or by phone.

The device has received publicity in various publications, television shows and is often shown and sold at child safety seat awareness events throughout the country.

“We also have a huge Japan distributor that we are working with for exclusive distribution rights,” Headden Lowe said.

The pad is universally designed to fit all child car seats. Children should not be covered with the pad or placed on the pad while it is on the car seat.

Ice packs can be inserted into the pad, the pad can be folded and carried like a purse, and then placed on the car seat upon leaving the vehicle. The cooler pad can keep a seat cool for up to 10 hours.

In addition to the BabyBeeCool Car Seat, Headden Lowe has recently expanded her product base.

The business just launched the BabyBeeCool The Universal Cooler Pad for adults, children and pet crates. The Cooler Pad is to be showcased on QVC next summer.

BabyBeeCool also sells a car window shade, baby bibs and blankets.

While reaching national success and recognition, Headden Lowe said her heart still beats for her Orangeburg roots.

She tries to visit Orangeburg and family about three or four times a year.

“I miss the ‘Southern people, my people’,” she said, noting that her sister Becky still lives in Orangeburg and is a business partner with Gene Antley, the owner of the Orangeburg’s Antley’s BBQ. “The culture is warm and exactly what you read about in those home magazines.”

And of course, there is the food.

“I head straight downtown to The Dairy O and order a famous slaw dog and walnut milkshake. We sure have nothing like this in Arizona,” she said. “Next on the eating list is Antley’s. Sometimes I do both in one day and then back again before I leave town.”

T&D Staff Writer Gene Zaleski can be reached by e-mail at gzaleski@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5551.

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