Robbie Soberano has a unique perspective as a dad of an autistic child and as an Elgin police officer.
He worries about his 11-year-old son, Ben, interacting with police and what could go wrong if an officer doesn’t have the right information to deal with his son’s autism.
It’s for that reason he’s glad Elgin police have a voluntary registry through which families can provide information about loved ones who have autism or are mentally ill or developmentally disabled — information officers can access when responding to an emergency situation.
For example, Soberano said, his son is nonverbal and tends to wander. Were Ben to go missing, Elgin police officers would have guidance through the Premise Alert Program on how to approach him and would be aware he couldn’t respond to commands.
An autistic person having a meltdown can seem like aggression, Soberano said. By having the information, police can prevent dangerous situations, he said.
The voluntary registry “saves time and lives,” Soberano said.
He’d like to see more police departments create a volunteer registry in their community. “Hopefully, there’s a push for it,” Soberano said. “It makes our jobs easier and makes us better.”
It’s one of the things they’ll be promoting Saturday at the Elgin Police Department’s annual Heroes United to Raise Autism Acceptance event, he said.
With 1 in 36 children being diagnosed with autism and the neurological and developmental disorder being four times more common in boys than girls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people need to be aware of and be accepting of those who have it, experts say.
Soberano’s in charge of the Heroes United celebration, now in its third year. There will be activities for children with sensory issues, games, food and rides in police vehicles as well as 30 vendors, he said.
“If they do get overwhelmed, we’ll have places where they can chill out,” he said.
The celebration is a way to bring about acceptance of autism, not just awareness, he said.
“It’s the new mantra. It’s acceptance as a community and inclusion,” Soberano said. Events like this one help increase inclusion while providing fun for families with special-needs children, he said.
The gathering will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 22, at the police department, 151 Douglas Ave. For more information, go to autismheroproject.com or cityofelgin.org/police.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
