LYNNFIELD — April is National Autism Awareness Month and the Lynnfield Police Department is launching a patch program to help support the cause.
The department will roll out a Police Autism Patch Program on April 1. The program will consist of selling limited edition patches for $10 apiece, with all proceeds donated to the Northeast Arc Autism Center in Danvers
Lynnfield resident Susan Parziale is spearheading the initiative. When she became aware of the success in the program in Reading, Braintree and Stoneham, Parziale said she initiated a discussion with the police department a few years ago about implementing it in Lynnfield. She recently renewed the effort after coming across an old email message from former Police Chief David Breen.
“I was looking through my email, trying to clean it up, and saw an old email I had sent to Chief Breen, so I followed up on it,” said Parziale. “Then, out of nowhere I got a message from Sgt. Chris DeCarlo saying he had touched base with Chief (Nick) Secatore and that he had already ordered 300 patches, so I designed a flyer and posted it right away.
“Last year, it was just too crazy with the pandemic, and this year, I was still wondering if they were going to be able to do it. I was so excited when I got the call from Chris. I know that the money is so important as so many organizations like the Arc have struggled over the last year, so we are thrilled to be able to donate the proceeds to an organization that accomplishes so many good things.”
“We are happy to take it on and raise some money for a good cause,” added DeCarlo. “The plan is to hit the ground running now and then pick up some other community events to keep the momentum going. So far, we have already had a great response and have actually sold about a dozen patches.”
Northeast Arc Autism Center Program Director Nancy Lucier said there are multiple benefits derived from the patch program and other similar programs.
“Initiatives like this are fantastic not only for the money that is raised that allows to offer greater resources to families, but they also provide increased awareness,” she said. “The Lynnfield Police Department does a great job to help us send our message to the community, so it’s a win-win for everybody.”
DeCarlo said the department is also working on a handful of other initiatives to complete next month. “Coffee with a Cop” and a parade are some of the other events under consideration for April, he said.
“The other campaigns we’re working on for April are a little more difficult because of COVID, but we are trying to get more creative to make it work,” DeCarlo said. “We’ve reached out to Northeast Arc and they are excited about the idea.
“Any help from the community is welcome. Our hope is to grow it. Given (the) short time frame it’s probably not going to be as big as we like, but (we) hope to make it bigger in upcoming years. It’s been great to get this rolling.”
To purchase a patch, mail or drop off a self-addressed envelope at the Lynnfield Police Department, 55 Summer St., Lynnfield, Mass., 01940. Include a check for $10, payable to the Northeast Arc Autism Support Center.
For more information about the patch contact DeCarlo at [email protected] or Officer Jonathan Santos at [email protected], or visit the department website at https://www.town.lynnfield.ma.us/police-department.
