Chatham Police
Thank you Chatham IL Police Department for going above and beyond to provide service to a senior citizen in need of help-and to the Meals on Wheels worker who made the welfare call to police!
*Below is the official message from the Chatham Illinois Police Department’s Facebook Post from 12-12-24.
Recently, two Chatham police officers were dispatched to a check the welfare call on an elderly senior citizen “shut in”, who was not answering the door to a meals on wheels worker for seniors. The worker had come to deliver a hot meal to the senior, and he had just left after he couldn’t deliver the meal to him. He became worried when no one came to the door because he knew the senior citizen lived alone by himself, and he also knew the senior was handicapped and did not get around very well at all.
Our officers got to the home as quickly as they could, and when they did, they noticed the front door was open. The senior was in his wheelchair in the doorway, looking around. At this point, the officers could have continued to drive on by, because all the worker asked them to do was check to make sure the senior was alright. But they decided to do more than that. They parked their squad car, got out, and walked up to the senior citizen to check on him. They introduced themselves to him and told him why they were there. The senior was very grateful they had came and that someone cared enough about him to do that. At that time, one of our officers asked the senior if he was still hungry and wanted his hot meal. The senior said yes, so our officers contacted the meals on wheels delivery worker to return with his meal.
While they were waiting for the worker to return, our officers stayed with the man and had a great conversation with him. They learned he was a Chicago Bears fan who, like them, also suffered plenty of angst and heartache these last few years having to watch the team play. They also learned he was being financially exploited by his granddaughter’s boyfriend, so they explained to him the process of filing a police report with our department to start a criminal investigation into this matter, whenever he was ready to do so.
While they were there, one of our officers noticed the senior was missing something at his home that could greatly help him out. The senior did not have a Knox Box.
A Knox Box is a small, wall-mounted safe that holds building keys for fire departments, emergency medical services, and sometimes police officers to retrieve in emergency situations. Local fire departments can hold master keys to all of these boxes in their response area so that they can quickly enter a building without having to force entry and damage a home in the process. Typically, these boxes are geared towards the elderly and those with a medical necessity. The senior citizen absolutely loved this idea, and asked if our officers could get him one.
Our officers knew the Chatham Fire Department had a Knox Box program, and they called them to help. They came out that day and installed one for the senior. He was so, so grateful for all of the help and caring.
The Chatham Police Department will continue to go above and beyond for the community we serve, and we are proud to work with our brothers and sisters in red to take great care of our community, together.
We are always here if you need us!