Butler County Human Services and the Alliance for Nonprofit Resources are helping give people with disabilities tools that can get them through an emergency situation and it’s going to save lives.

Project READY, which launched in 2024, is designed to help first responders identify individuals with disabilities who may not be able to respond to their presence in an expected manner through the use of reflective decals for homes and automobiles. Melissa Vettori, of the Alliance for Nonprofit Resources, explained individuals with disabilities, some of whom are nonverbal, might have behaviors that could lead to an atypical interaction with a first responder. The result of her noticing this is the Responder Education for Awareness of Disability (READY) program.

Decals that say “Occupant May Not Respond As Expected” are available through Butler County Human Services, where a copy of PennDOT’s “Yellow Dot” information booklet is also available. Both programs are both designed to take some of the weight of communication off of the person in the interaction with a disabilities.

This is an important effort that shows the care people involved have for people with disabilities. People in the Alliance for Nonprofit Resources work with people like this every day and know the limitations of communication some of them have.

So spreading this to people who will be at emergency situations is not only a great idea, it’s a show of empathy for both responders and the potential victim. They both will be helped by providing this information, all contained on a small sticker-type decal.

The opportunity to save explanation time on behalf of a person with disabilities and allow responders to potentially save the decal-wearer’s life and possibly more people can make a big difference.

— ET