People’s Bank Initiates Triad Demonstration––

Purse Patrol Reminds Shoppers To Be Wary

By Dottie Evans

It’s holiday time and you’ve got a lot on your mind.

You are at the grocery store, in a rush to buy what you need for tonight’s dinner. There is an additional sense of urgency due to the forecast of snow. You want to get home before the roads start to ice up.

Hurrying down the soup aisle, you reach for the Cream of Mushroom that you’ll need for tuna noodle casserole. Then you spy egg noodles across way, so you walk over to pick up a package. You take a little longer, looking for the extra-wide home-style brand.

Instead of returning right away to your shopping cart where you’ve left your purse, you are distracted by the sight of a friend down by salad dressings. You chat briefly about the weather. Snowflakes have begun to drift down outside the storefront window.

Suddenly, you remember you’ve left your cart with your unguarded purse over by the soups. You hurry back. The cart is there, but the purse is gone.

 

Safety And Security

This is exactly the outcome that local officials involved in Triad are hoping to prevent.

Triad is a formal three-way cooperative effort between law enforcement agencies, town government and townwide senior services groups that was launched in Newtown during July 2003. Patrol Officer Maryhelen McCarthy is spearheading the effort for the Newtown Police Department.

The purpose of Triad is prevent crime and increase awareness of safety and security concerns on behalf of all Newtown residents –– but especially for senior citizens because they may be more frequently targeted by lawbreakers.

The issue of purse safety in public places was tackled recently during a special Senior Appreciation Day sponsored by People’s Bank, held on Monday, December 8.

People’s Bank has branches in two Newtown locations –– at the Queen Street Shopping Center and at Super Stop & Shop at Sand Hill Plaza –– and both branches participated in the daylong program.

Volunteers from the Newtown Senior Center and from Lockwood Lodge at Ashlar were present at both locations and passed out literature. Refreshments were also offered.

Officer McCarthy was prepared to answer questions concerning various aspects of safety for senior citizens. Her topics included protection from telemarketing fraud, winter driving tips, ways of protecting one’s car when faced with an emergency situation, safety tips at home, and identity theft issues.

 

Purse Patrol Targets Unguarded Pocketbooks

As morning shoppers were filling Super Stop & Shop at Sand Hill Plaza at 10 am on December 8, store officials announced over the loudspeaker that a Purse Patrol would be strolling down the aisles, looking to remind shoppers about purse safety. Patrol members would be tagging any unguarded purses before speaking to their owners.

Officer McCarthy and Marilyn Place, director of the Office of Senior Services, discovered that it was not long before they found a few shoppers who were not paying adequate attention to their purses. And not every offender was a senior citizen.

“A pocketbook left out in the open is a tempting target to a purse-snatcher,” said Officer McCarthy, as she placed a sticker on a young mother’s unprotected bag.

In this case, the shopper had put her bag in the lower rack of her cart, and her small child was seated in the top carrier section. She had turned away from the cart to check out the cereals.

“I can’t believe I did that,” the shopper said in dismay when she saw the tag on her purse.

“Just a few weeks ago, I lost $400 when another bag was stolen. I should know better,” she added.

Other shoppers whose pocketbooks were at risk were advised not to put them in their shopping carts at all. Rather, they should hang them by straps around their arms or necks, and keep the bags in front where they could see them at all times.

Longtime Newtown resident Barbara Wadleigh, a senior citizen with a better idea, demonstrated the clever alternative method she had devised. Mrs Wadleigh keeps her bag strapped into the child carrier section of the shopping cart with the child safety strap wound securely through the purse handles.

“That’s a great idea, I’ll have to pass it along,” remarked Officer McCarthy.

Emergency Beacons Light The Way

Another safety device demonstrated during People’s Bank Senior Appreciation Day was the Emergency Beacon Light program, also introduced by Triad in July.

The specialized light bulbs fit into standard light sockets. When a light switch is turned on twice in rapid succession, the light bulb becomes a flashing signal to help police or emergency service workers locate a victim’s home.

Police consider such a flashing beacon a valuable aid in quickly locating people who are in distress, especially in the nighttime, when the addresses of residences may not be readily apparent.

“It’s very important for anyone in trouble to dial 911 first,” reminded Officer McCarthy.

“But turning on the emergency beacon is an excellent second step. That way we can find the house more quickly,” she said.

The special Beacon Light bulbs are available at the Newtown Senior Center on Riverside Road in Sandy Hook and at the Newtown Police Department on Main Street at a cost of $5 each.

“These beacon lights are especially useful in Newtown where the roads are winding, or when houses are partially obscured by trees or bushes. We advise people to put them in their front windows or outside lampposts,” said Officer McCarthy.

The Connecticut Council on Aging gave out 500 of the Beacon Light bulbs in July.

Bank Officials Answer Questions On ATM Use

For those who are not comfortable using the ATM (Automated Teller Machine) in their local bank branches, People’s Bank Assistant Vice President and Financial Services Manager Kevin Cocchiola, Jr, was available during Senior Appreciation Day at the Super Stop & Shop branch.

“Anyone with questions about automated banking is welcome to ask me for help,” Mr Cocchiola said. One of the first cautions about ATM use, he explained, is security.

“Don’t use your name as a password, don’t write your password down, and be sure that no one is looking over your shoulder when you are keying it in,” Mr Cocchiola said.

People are also advised to change their passwords frequently, he added.

“Never provide your password or PIN [Personal Identity Number] over the phone, and never give your credit card account numbers to someone else to use in your behalf.”

An ATM card should be treated as though it were cash, he said, and never used in an isolated area where people are loitering.

“We don’t want to alarm older citizens, but these are precautions they should follow –– and we would hope everyone would follow –– to prevent crime and credit card fraud,” Mr Cocchiola said.

Finally, if credit or ATM cards are lost, the loss should be reported to the issuing company immediately. This limits any unauthorized used of the card and permits the company to begin the process of issuing a new card.