Page 53 - December 2020

10-year-old boy’s safety is walk in the park with 7th District officers
As soon as Sergeant Don Hoard in the 7th District heard that he’d be respond- ing to a 10-year-old boy who had gone for a walk and lost his mother, he knew that he’d be putting his calming skills to the test.
The boy, who is on the autism spec- trum, was spotted on 59th and Bish- op by Sergeant Carris Crawford from the Community Safety Team (CST). He had walked about a mile away from his mother, who was desperately trying to locate him.
Hoard, who has 24 years on the job, teamed up with Officer Collin Warren and drove around until they found the boy. They then used soothing voices to try and coax the child into their patrol vehicle and back to safety, but to no avail.
“He wouldn’t get in anybody’s car,” said Hoard. “We stopped and he just kept repeating, ‘I was just taking a walk, I was just taking a walk.’ I’m glad we found him, because that really isn’t the right neighborhood for him to be in at 10 years old.”
An unbelievable team effort by Ser- geant Hoard and Officer Warren in the 7th District, along with Crawford, Officer Jeane Mendez and Officer Kerry Little from the CST, led to a swift reunion for the young boy and his mother. They were able to lead her to her son. She was hys- terical, knowing that he would not have been able to find his way home without the patient assistance of the law enforce- ment officers.
“The mom, she was just screaming and hollering — it was hard,” Hoard said. “It was hard for the officer to get all the information from him, and then she was just so upset that he was gone.”
For Hoard, helping the most vulnera- ble populations of the Englewood com- munity is one of his biggest passions. After more than two decades on the job, he’s honed the art of remaining calm in situations that can quickly escalate.
As he drove away from the response, he felt an encompassing peace in know- ing that he was able to play his role in
keeping a young member of the commu- nity safe.
“I like to try to make things better, even though I’ve been in and out of En- glewood all these years,” Sergeant Hoard said. “I like to think that my fellow co- workers and I made a little difference that will at least bring some kind of satis- faction to the people that we serve here.”
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