Police departments embracing ‘Walk with Derek’

By Nicole Zappone Town Times

NAUGATUCK – Four years ago, Jennifer Harding had a scare no mother should have to experience. Her son, Derek, who was 8 years old at the time, disappeared one day. The boy, who is on the autism spectrum, walked away from his grandfather’s house with his mother’s phone in hand, wearing nothing but a diaper.

Derek was found safe soon after, but Harding knows this situation could have had a tragic outcome. Sadly, such incidents are not uncommon for parents raising autistic children.

“When we moved to Naugatuck, a 16-year-old autistic individual took off on his parents from Naugatuck on foot and ended up picked up in Oxford by state troopers,” Harding said.

“Once that happened, I knew I had to get this done,”she added.

What Harding did was design a simple tool that members of law enforcement can use should an autistic child in their community go missing.

The “Walk with Derek” Autism Safety Alert Form form Harding conceived of in 2022 allows parents to de-

See ‘Walk with Derek’, A2

Nicole Zappone, Town Times