NORFOLK, Va. — Twelve-year-old Evan Bailey loves to jump.
The Norfolk resident with autism also loves to wander. His mom, Robyn, recalls a horrifying incident when Evan was 2.
“We were at my in-laws’ house for a party, and we had Evan-ized the basement for him. I was standing at the top of the steps checking on him about every five minutes. I went downstairs to check on him, and he was gone.” said Evan's mom, Robyn Bailey.
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Panic set in, and the focus quickly turned to the pond at the edge of the house.
“The police came. Fifty people were looking for him, screaming his name, but I thought this isn’t going to work. He doesn’t respond to his name; he doesn’t know how to do any of this.” recalls Bailey.
After two hours, he was found safe, having fallen asleep under a table. But that experience set Robyn and her husband on a path to find a way to keep Evan safe.
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After an online search, she found Project Lifesaver.
The program was rolled out in Chesapeake in 1999 by former Chesapeake police Captain Gene Saunders. I interviewed Saunders when the program first started, mainly as a way to find Alzheimer’s patients.
“We were starting to get a number of searches for Alzheimer’s patients, and we weren’t successful. We didn’t find them in time or didn’t find them at all.” said retired police captain Gene Saunders, founder of Project Lifesaver.
Tired of all the tragic outcomes, he came up with a way to track a missing person quickly and efficiently using a tracking bracelet and radio waves. He actually came up with the idea from wildlife tracking.
“If we can track living things, then why can’t we track people who are at risk?” said Saunders.
“It’s permanently attached, so I have to cut it to change it.” said Bailey.
Evan has been in the program for 10 years, and it's free to residents in Norfolk and in most jurisdictions, paid for by local municipalities.
Watch: Chesapeake Project Lifesaver Program reunites missing mother with son
“He wears it every day. We check the battery every day. If we lose him, basically after five minutes, we call them because it takes them about 15–20 minutes to get to us.” said Bailey.
Robyn has a special number to call at the Norfolk Sheriff’s Office if Evan goes missing. The deputy is specifically trained through Project Lifesaver.
“It’s how I sleep at night. Before, one of us was always with him, even in the middle of the night, because he does get up throughout the night.” she said.
Captain Saunders tells me more than 4,400 people have been rescued since the program started, and it is now offered in all 50 states, parts of Canada, and Puerto Rico.
Developed by a local hero with a passion for helping, Project Lifesaver is just that and is positively Hampton Roads.
