By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com
Members of the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office went on a hunt for transmitters Wednesday afternoon for their first day of Project Lifesaver training.
Tim Caldwell, a national instructor for Project Lifesaver, began training seven members of the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office on how to use the organization’s tracking system. Trainees armed with tracking devices scoured the front lawn of the Crawford County Justice Center in search of active transmitters.
Project Lifesaver is a Search & Rescue program designed for at-risk individuals who are prone to wandering, such as those with dementia, Alzheimer’s, autism, and other cognitive conditions. First responders are provided with tracking technology to assist in the search of individuals enrolled in the program.
“It’s just an additional resource for us,” explained Sheriff Scott Kent. “Anytime we have someone missing, quick response is always our biggest concern, locating that person to reunite them with their families as soon as possible.”
Individuals who are signed up for the program are provided with a bracelet with a FM transmitter, which can later be tracked with an omnidirectional antenna if that person wandered.
The Crawford County Lions Clubs, consisting of the Bucyrus, Colonel Crawford, and Crestline clubs, purchased the equipment to make Project Lifesaver possible in the county.
“We’re trying to raise the funds for them,” said Dave Schwenning, Colonel Crawford Lions Club member and zone chairman. “The sheriff owns all the equipment and his people are the only ones who can be certified to use the equipment.”
The Lions clubs and the Sheriff’s Office received a $4,527 grant from the Community Foundation for Crawford County. The Lions Club kicked in $1,750 and are still accepting donations.
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Schwenning added that individuals cannot enroll in the program if they are in a nursing home; they must be living at home with a caregiver.
Kent admitted the department was not quite at the point of enrolling people in the program – the trainees still had two more days on instruction to go through – but he and the Lions Club will be working with the Crawford County Council on Aging to prepare for that step. He added that they will look at how other agencies have set up their program, combining that knowledge with what they learn in their training to create a program specific to Crawford County.
More information about Project Lifesaver can be found at projectlifesaver.org.