SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (KGUN) — In 2021, the Cochise County chapter of WeSERV introduced the secure lock box program to local fire departments, through the Real Wishes Foundation.
Since then, roughly 400 secure lock boxes have been given out to people in Cochise County to help EMS and firefighters get into homes in case of an emergency.
"We highly recommend it, and I'd like to see it all throughout Cochise County,” said Sierra Vista Fire Marshal, Don Foster.
Sierra Vista was the first department to sign up for the program. Foster says because the city has an older population and many live on their own, it was an obvious choice to participate.
“It gives them a really good peace of mind, so they can stay in their house longer without worrying about how someone is going to get in to help me if needed,” he said.
The nonprofit provides the departments with lock boxes, to distribute to the community. Each box gets a unique code, that only first responders will know. That way, they won't have to break a window or door in order to gain access to a home.
“I literally watched a door get broken into to go in and rescue a woman that had fallen, and she'd been there for a couple of days," said Sherri Ward, board member for the Real Wishes Foundation. "That broke my heart.”
Seeing what happened to her neighbor and learning about this program from a colleague prompted Ward to introduce this to local first responders. Ward says damage to a home can cause added stress for the person who needed the help in the first place.
"To alleviate that stress from them getting help, it's just a blessing,” she said.
Willcox, San Simon, Fry and Sierra Vista fire departments all have lock boxes and are partnering with the nonprofit to install as many in their service areas as possible.
“I think it's a great thing to have for your community, especially if you're in a rural area, because it's just it saves you time (to get to the patient),” Foster said.
The boxes are free to the community and the fire departments. Ward says the nonprofit collects donations, that are then used to purchase the lock boxes.
Anyone can apply for the program, as long as their fire department is participating. Any department in Cochise County can participate.
"It’s not going to go away anytime soon. It's definitely going to grow,” Foster said.
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Alexis Ramanjulu is a reporter in Cochise County for KGUN 9. She began her journalism career reporting for the Herald/Review in Sierra Vista, which she also calls home. Share your story ideas with Alexis by emailing alexis.ramanjulu@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook.
