Recently I responded to a possible fraud situation involving one of our elderly residents who lives alone. This particular person has family nearby who provide a very good support system for her, but that got me thinking. What if she didn't?

Mancos has a number of elderly folks and like anyone else, we want them to be safe as possible. Do you know of an elderly person who lives alone? Could it be one of your neighbors? Do you know them? Have you ever spoken to them?

I'd like to see our friendly little town become a network of eyes and ears who keeps watch on our elderly residents all of the time.

How you can do that is pretty easy. Introduce yourself. Get to know them a little. If you can introduce yourself to their family members, do so. Offer to be a backup to them if their elder needs help and he/she can't get a hold of anyone else. I'd take the time to obtain the family members' names and phone numbers - just in case. Pay attention to the "normal" activities and comings and goings at the elders' home.

Of course, don't hesitate to call us if you see anything out of the ordinary at the elderly person's residence.

I use the words "out of the ordinary" because in the case of an elderly person, anything out of the ordinary could mean something's up. Haven't seen old Joe out taking his normal walks lately? Haven't seen old Joe's dog out in the yard like you do normally every day? Is old Joe's mail not being picked up regularly or are packages left on the front porch for more than a day? There are a lot of indicators that something might be amiss at old Joe's house that you might not even think of, little things that aren't as obvious as a suspicious vehicle or person let's say.

I'll repeat, please don't hesitate to call us if you think something's not quite right at old Joe's house. In police lingo it's referred to as a "welfare check" and we do those for many different reasons all the time.

Let's all keep a special watch on our elderly folks; they deserve it. As always, thanks for your support..

Email Mancos Marshal John L. Cox at jcox@mancoscolorado.com.