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Welcome to Project Lifesaver
Pierce-St.Croix!

Enrollment info is now available!
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PLSWI
It is amazing how far things have come since August 2007 when our community came together with the Pierce and St. Croix County Sheriff’s Departments in an effort to bring Project Lifesaver, a proven program for safeguarding and locating individuals who may be at risk for wandering, to vulnerable citizens in our counties. With a commitment from both Sheriffs to implement the program, volunteers from the community set out to raise funds in order for our two counties to become members of Project Lifesaver International, a non-profit organization that provides training, equipment, and program guidelines and support to it’s member agencies. Volunteers set an initial fundraising goal of $20,000 to cover the cost of memberships and start-up, which includes basic training and equipment for both agencies. With the help of determined volunteers, funds raised have exceeded the initial goal! And, a few civic groups have expressed interest in “sponsoring” families and donating funds to enroll a client if needed. Thank you to all of the volunteers and donors!

In an effort to make the program available sooner, Project Lifesaver International arranged for four counties in Wisconsin to train collaboratively. Two officers from Pierce County and two from St. Croix County completed training in Adams County September 29th - October 1st. These four officers are now Search Specialists and Certified Trainers, and will be able to train additional personnel in their departments. The training also covered information about the next steps for getting the program established in their counties. The departments are now using Project Lifesaver International’s guidelines and program materials to develop program procedures for enrolling clients. They are also working on a timeline for training additional personnel, disseminating information to county agencies, schools, and the community, and for accepting applications and enrolling clients. The departments have set a goal of February 2009 for implementing the program, which will remain a partnership between the two departments in order to best meet the needs of the vulnerable individuals in our counties. Determining additional equipment needs is also being explored, which may be influenced by the number of clients who enroll, and if there is a “cluster” of clients in a particular area.

To download a press release from the Pierce and St. Croix Counties Sherrif's departments, please click here.


The following is a list of some “Fast Facts” about Project Lifesaver and why we want it in Pierce and St. Croix Counties:
  • Project Lifesaver (PLS) relies on radio technology and specially trained personnel. Clients wear a personalized wristband that emits a tracking signal. The bracelet is light weight, water proof, and the batteries are changed with the assistance of trained PLS personnel on a monthly basis. The cost for the first year for a client is approximately $300, then a small monthly fee for maintenance (batteries & bands).
  • The radio wrist transmitter emits an automatic tracking signal every second, 24 hours a day. Each bracelet has a unique radio frequency. The Sheriff’s Department’s trained personnel are equipped with special tracking equipment that can receive each radio frequency up to about a mile. A signal can still be transmitted and received if in water, in a building, and in wooded areas.
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  • In the event a client becomes missing, the caregiver will immediately call 911 and the trained personnel will be dispatched to the last known location. Average time to locate a client is 30 minutes!
  • The start up cost for the program includes two days of training for law enforcement and emergency personnel, one-day “train the trainer” course (so local trainers are available to sustain the program), the basic equipment package needed for training and start up, and all of the materials necessary to implement the program and enroll clients.
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  • Incidence of Alzheimer’s and Autism are increasing at alarming rates! Alzheimer’s currently strikes an estimated 4.2 to 5.8 million Americans, and the incidence of Autism is now 1 in 150 children!
  • Why both Counties? Since Pierce and St. Croix have shared communities (i.e. River Falls, Spring Valley), and the counties can provide mutual aid to one another should a search be necessary!

The average cost for a traditional search can be up to $1,500/hour, and can take a minimum of 8-9 hours. That could mean at the very least $10,000 for one search. And there is no dollar amount that can cover the cost of a human life!

For more information about Project Lifesaver, please visit the national Project Lifesaver site at: http://www.projectlifesaver.org

You can also download a PDF of our local brochure here.


 
  
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