NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
April 8, 2008
Contact: Michele Nicholson
Public Information Officer
(850) 651-7420
“CARE” PROGRAM IMPLEMENTED
Click Here for CARE Program Sign Up Form
Okaloosa County Sheriff Charlie Morris today
unveiled his agency’s new computerized “Call Reassurance” phone system called
“CARE”. It can call subscribers, (usually senior citizens) , multiple times on a
daily basis to check on their well-being, providing a better sense of security
for both the individual and his or her loved ones.
The
Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office is the first Sheriff’s Office in Florida to
implement this free outreach service benefitting the public.
Other agencies across the nation who have been providing the service say
it has proven especially popular with home bound older residents or seniors who
live alone .
Those who
sign up can establish the days of the week and times of day to get a phone call
from an automated system developed by Database Systems Corporation. If no one
answers, the system will call back a second time - and then a third if necessary
- at ten minute intervals. If
there’s still no response after the third call within thirty minutes, a deputy
and/or designated contact person will be sent to the address to do a welfare
check. Enrollees are asked to provide the names of three emergency contacts.
The CARE service
is free to Okaloosa residents and was funded with dollars seized from drug
dealers in drug forfeiture cases. As of Tuesday, April 8th, the
Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office will begin working with residents who need
assistance in filling out sign-up forms.
For
information on enrolling in the program or details on its operation, please
contact Crime Prevention Specialist Ashley Bailey at 850-651-7153.
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