The local non-profit A Little Compassion (ALC) held its first Lattes with Law Enforcement sit-down discussion at the organization’s Nest Coffee House on Nov. 16. The event was an informal talk between the town’s police department and the Nest’s neurodiverse workers.

The discussion brought together neurodivergent individuals and those aligned with ALC’s cause to communicate with Deep River law enforcement to foster a healthy and safe relationship. According to ALC’s Executive Director Jane Moen, many neurodivergent individuals may feel anxious or overwhelmed when interacting with law enforcement and other authority figures, and the setting of the Nest Coffee House could provide a cozy space for a positive relationship to begin.

“Our hope was to bring together folks that are neurodivergent themselves, or love and care about someone who they love and care about, that they worry about in terms of having positive interactions with law enforcement,” Moen said. “Whether they’re the ones that need the help or are in a situation that doesn’t involve them that could be dangerous. [We could] come up with some common ground of how to best work together, so in the end everyone is feeling safe and listened to.”

Moen said the first talk should lay the groundwork for ALC and the Nest to have more discussions on similar topics in the future.

In attendance at the talk was Resident State Trooper Stephen Krause, who concurred with Moen from the perspective of a figure in law enforcement.

“People who are neurodiverse, they may have anxiety over what is in front of them and it may seem like a daunting task even to speak to somebody in uniform,” said Krause. “However, if there’s previous conversation or a relationship that’s made, that could help somebody through that situation just a little bit more. That can definitely turn the tides in any situation.”

Terry Garrity, a parent of a neurodivergent child, saw how the conversation could lead to relationships beyond law enforcement, but with other emergency responder groups as well, in being successful with young adults who may be anxious around such persons.

“It was really interesting having this conversation, looking at it from a parent’s perspective, and we’ve experienced situations with law enforcement and trading ideas on how best to get information to first responders so that they can help families in these situations when they arrive,” Garrity said.

Kimberly Taylor, the program director at ALC and a neurodivergent individual, ultimately found the Lattes with Law Enforcement sit down to be too important not to be a part of, not just to quell the stress that may exist between neurodivergent individuals and authority figures, but to breed safer community on a whole.

“It reminds everybody that we are part of the same community, and reminds the young adults that law enforcement are also people that have feelings and want to get to know other people and the young adults,” she said. “Vice versa, it shows law enforcement that they are expected to be present and part of the community and that they are appreciated. We’re one community, we’re not talking about two different populations.”

For what is the ideal relationship between neurodivergent individuals and figures of authority and emergency, Mary Helchowski, a member of ALC’s Board of Directors and neurodivergent young adult who has been at Nest from the beginning, has the answer.

“There needs to be trust going both ways. I think that trust should be earned by both parties, but I think that’s key to letting someone help you is to trust them,” Helchowski said. “Sometimes you call the police, and you’re in a really scary situation, and you just need to trust them, and that can be really hard for anybody. The police officer would also have to trust that the person in crisis is doing their best. They’re not being difficult to be difficult.”