43
Liberty initiates safety program
Photo
Liberty Police Department Capt. Toby Meloro, left, and Sgt. Robert Graef install a flashing light socket outside a Liberty resident's home as part of Senior Watch Program. If a resident is having a problem the resident can turn on the flashing light and officers responding can easily identify the house.
Photo
Liberty Police Department Sgt. Robert Graef installs a lock box at resident's home as part of Senior Watch Program. At left is Librty Police Capt. Toby Meloro.
Liberty Senior Watch
Video
Liberty Police and Fire Departments have started a Senior Watch program that helps first responders locate and gain access to the homes of seniors who may have had an emergency.
Lockboxes containing house keys will allow police and fire personnel to enter homes without breaking a door or window.
The long arm of the law is reaching out to be a good neighbor to residents of Liberty Township.
Liberty Police Department has initiated a new segment of its Senior Watch Program by offering to install key lockboxes and special light sockets for senior citizens, disabled citizens and others with special needs.
Capt. Toby A. Meloro explained how the program works. The lockbox holds a key to the senior citizen’s home, and only the police and fire departments have access to the master key that opens all the boxes.
In an emergency, police and fire personnel can use the key to gain access to a home. “This means we don’t have to break into a door or window,” Meloro said.
The lockboxes are usually installed on the door frame, behind a screen door, and out of sight.
Special light sockets will turn a resident’s front porch light or other outside light, visible from the street, into a blinking signal. A standard light bulb must be used. When the switch is flipped twice, the light blinks off and on. “This is a signal to police that something is wrong,” Meloro said, adding that the blinking light will help emergency personnel locate a residence even quicker.
Meloro said he and Detective Sgt. Robert A. Greaf have installed 18 lockboxes so far and have 16 more on the list. But that list will probably expand as more eligible people learn about the program.
“We’ve gotten good response from people,” Greaf said, noting that Liberty investigated other such senior watches and took what would work best in the township.
Meloro said a grant of $5,000 from Trumbull County Senior Services Advisory Council is paying for the lockboxes, which cost $50 each. Funds for the special sockets, costing $30 each, are from donations of old cell phones. Meloro said he worked with Thomas Swift, Trumbull County probate judge, who is involved in programs to help senior citizens, on this aspect.
There is no cost to Liberty residents; just time spent contacting Liberty police at (330) 759-1315 to make arrangements for the installation and the installation itself, which takes about 15 minutes.
Meloro said the Senior Watch Program was spurred by the incident in May 2008 involving Mary Rush of Mansell Drive. The 87-year-old, who suffered from a form of dementia, had locked herself out of her home and in the process of trying to get back in, broke her leg and was cut. Police responded after neighbors called about someone crying but did not find Rush, who died.
“This senior watch evolved from the situation with Mary Rush,” said LPD Chief Richard Tisone. He said the police department has a better understanding of situations involving the elderly.
Tisone said he hopes the Senior Watch Program will “make people feel safer.”
That’s the result it has achieved with one 70-something woman who recently had a lockbox installed. Though she has an alarm necklace and in-house security system because she lives alone, the woman said, “This is another means to get help if I need it.”
“My sister is getting this, too,” she said
“My children live out of town,” the woman said, explaining her only local relatives also are elderly. She said she fell late one night a few months ago in her home and ended up with bruised ribs. She hesitated to call for help because she didn’t want to disturb the neighborhood with sirens.
“With this, I feel more secure ... absolutely,” the woman said.
Liberty Township has a sizable elderly population, and its trustees have sponsored the Liberty Township Senior Watch Program for their benefit. The programs are available not only to senior citizens, but to shut-ins, the disabled and others with special needs. Liberty is promoting a “neighbor helping neighbor” concept.
Check-in program: Senior citizens who live alone can become part of the call-in program. By pre-arrangement, they decide the time and day that they will call in and check with the police department. If a call is missed, someone from LPD will call or an officer will stop by to check on them.
Elderly call program: On designated times and days (usually at 9 a.m. Mondays), the LPD will call homes of participants to check on their welfare. If no contact is made, an officer will be dispatched to the residence.
Senior Watch program: Designated volunteers or the LPD visit the program participant weekly to check on their welfare. Volunteers in this program undergo background checks, are fingerprinted and take training in elderly needs and assessment.
Applications: Prospective participants for all programs, including installation of lockboxes and light signals, must fill out applications that are available at Liberty Township Building, 1315 Church Hill-Hubbard Road; fire stations on Logan Way and corner of Belmont and Tibbetts Wick, and on the township Web site at www.libertytwp.com. The application asks for pertinent information and in what program the participant wants to be enrolled. As part of the application process, a police or fire official will conduct a site evaluation to determine any safety concerns or other issues.
Contacts: Marcy Orlando, records clerk and secretary, and Kathy Welsh, secretary, at LPD make many of the phone calls to program participants. They work as a team with Capt. Toby A. Meloro and Detective Sgt. Robert A. Greaf, who are installing the lock boxes and special light sockets. So far, nearly 40 township residents are participating in the check-in and elderly call programs.
Information: Contact Meloro or Greaf at Liberty Police at (330) 759-1315.