In an emergency, whether it be a car accident or a fire or anything involving talking to a first responder, trying to explain what happened or what is wrong can be a stressful and emotional situation for anyone. For an individual living with a cognitive disability, that experience can be exponentially more difficult. To assist those with cognitive disabilities in dealing with emergency responders, two local moms and the Guilford Police Department have teamed up to bring the Empower Program to town.

Through the newly instated Empower Program, local residents with cognitive disabilities can apply for an Empower Card, an identification card with specialized important information. In the event of an emergency, that card can be handed to first responders, alerting them to any specific concerns and highlighting emergency contact information for the individual cardholder.

Guilford Police Sergeant Martina Jakober said in the event of an emergency, an individual might become nonverbal or be unable to communicate effectively. That’s where the card comes in.

“If they were able to provide us this card, which has their information, their family members’ information, we can then reach out to that person in a very expeditious manner,” she said. “We can get them in touch with their loved one and maybe we can find out if they have an allergy to a medication or maybe there is something we can do to help sooth them.”

Jakober said the goal of the program is to try and make what can be a very stressful situation a little easier for residents. Since the program rolled out in April, she said residents have been appreciative.

“In my conversation I had with someone who was interested in the card she felt that it enabled her to have a sense of relief that if she had a situation, she knew she had something to rely on to explain her situation a little bit easier without having to have the full stress of doing that on her own,” she said. “It just took a little bit of that stress off.”

Guilford parents Kim Beckett and Jaye Carlson brought the idea for the program to the Guilford Police Department. Beckett said she had heard about the program and wanted to see if it could be implemented in town.

“Jaye and I thought that the ID program was a way to protect all people with disabilities,” she said. “So many individuals don’t visibly show their disability. Through Unified Sports, Jaye and I work closely with many of these families. As parents, we struggle with every worry on the planet, and this was a common theme. Many of our children cannot articulate effectively, and when you compound the situation with stress, noise, and flashing lights, it can be a frightening experience.”

Beckett said the Guilford Police Department was very responsive to the idea of the program and said Chief Jeff Hutchinson told her, “Anything that is helpful to the citizens of Guilford was something he would want to support.” From there, the program took off.

“The program will first introduce individuals with disabilities to Guilford’s first responders, and from there they will know they have a trusted familiar face in uniform,” Beckett said. “How awesome is that? Second, it will train anyone with a cognitive disability how to use the card to represent them in case of an emergency. It’s an added layer of protection providing information to those who need to know it.”

The Guilford Police Department held the first program training on April 28 and Jakober said the sessions were well attended by people participating in the program as well as their family members and caretakers. Training covered how to use the card, how to show the card to a first responder or officer, and other information. Based on the first training, Jakober said this is a training program the department hopes to hold on a monthly basis or even more frequently if the need is there.

“It’s a learning process,” she said of the program. “Because it’s a new program, we are all working through it, so the good thing, too, is from Saturday’s program we had a lot of input from family members and caretakers on what they thought and all of that is really helpful because we need that. It’s for them, so if they can give us info, we can work on it and make it better.”

For more information, call Sergeant Jakober at the Guilford Police Department at 203-453-8061.