Walker PD add new equipment for people with sensory needs
WALKER, Mich. (WOOD) — The Walker Police Department is adding new equipment that will help people with sensory needs.
The department completed training for Carter Kits. They are bags full of items like sunglasses, headphones, fidget spinners and slinkies.
While the kit may look like it’s full of toys, each item inside has a specific purpose. The sunglasses and headphones are used to help people who are hypersensitive, meaning loud noises and bright lights bother them. In emergency situations, those items will help calm them down. The fidget toys are useful for people with hyposensitivity which means they want to be active or move.
The kits were put together by Detective Justin Severs with the Saginaw Township Police Department. His son Carter has Autism Spectrum Disorder. Severs wanted to put together something to help any individual who might benefit from the kits during a crisis.
The Walker Fire Department has four kits and the police department has new kits on the road as well. It was funded through Kent County.
“It’s been a comfort that we have access to that,” Chad Host, the deputy chief for the city of Walker Fire Department, said. “It’s not just for individuals on the spectrum, it is for everyone that has a sensory issue, so having the tools that we need to do our job well, that provides a lot of comfort for us.”
Carter Kits were first made in 2019 and 18,000 of the kits have made their way around the country.
“Our job is to do to help however we can and having a good understanding of what those disorders may look like in a peer will help us respond better. These kits have the potential to really make someone’s day better, so, and that’s ultimately our job,” Host said.
Carter Kits, which is now a non-profit organization, said on its website that it hopes to expand where the kits are used. They initially were made for first responders, but in the future, they would like to see them used in places like schools and churches.
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