BAKERSFIELD CALIF. (KERO) — With busy roadways around some parks, local mothers are coming together to ensure the safety of their autistic children.
- 50% of children with autism tend to wander off due to some sensory overload or fixations.
- Fran's goal is to create safety fences due to high traffic around certain parks in Bakersfield.
- Mothers are coming together all over Bakersfield to discuss the needs for children at the Spectrum at parks.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Fran Medrano a mother 2 pushes says her 6-year old son Andrew on the swings at Jastro park a park they don't usually go to.
happens
Medrano says,"There's been instances where Andrew has run off and that's happen twice."
Because of that reason she works with Alongside Autism with other moms creating a petition to add fences to Bakersfield parks as she has safety concerns for her son, and others like him.
Fran says Andrew tends to wander off due to sensory over load or fixations.
Mandreno explains, "Children with autism 50% of them wander off or run off and a lot of times we fear every day for their safety."
Parks are a concern because the speed limits around some of them vary from 45 to 35 miles per hour fences add a barrier for some protection.
Medrano shares,"A park like this is a perfect example of why fences are necessary you can see there are a ton of cars and this doesn't have a fence we can use adding a fence to this area would keep kids from wandering off into the street or running off into a potentially hazard situation so we hope to see more fences"
Fran is not alone, another mom from Alongside Autism, Brittni Brewer, came out to the park to show support, as she is one out of more than 740 parent signatures trying to get safety fences, for kids like her daughter Evie Brewer.
Brewer adds, "Me telling Evie stay over here she might not have the intent to do that so she'll just run off or Evie don't do this she won't respond like a typical child would."
Fran's goal with Alongside Autism is to get a fence at a park in each region of Bakersfield to help with those safety concerns.
Medrano addresses, "It would be a great message for Bakersfield to send that there about inclusion and they care about our community."
As this is still an ongoing process and they tell me they will be having a meeting with a Bakersfield district ward supervisor and would love the communities input.
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