 The Yellow Dot program is designed to help citizens and first responders get vital passenger information in the event of an automobile crash or medical emergency involving a participant's vehicle. The program kicks off this Saturday and the Gorham Police Department has prepared a public service announcement describing how you can participate and help to enroll others. Hi, I'm Officer Ted Hatch with the Gorham Main Police Department. I'm the liaison officer for our department with the Gorham Westbrook Triad. I work alongside Captain Tom Roth from the Westbrook Police Department in the Triad to bring programs that generally are for senior citizens to help reduce the victimization and crime involved around senior citizen population. However, this program we're bringing to you today is a Yellow Dot program. This is for all drivers of all ages. What this program does is in the event of a car crash, when you, the operator of a vehicle, are not able to speak for yourself. We recognize that on your vehicle, we see a Yellow Dot in the back window of the vehicle. We know that in that vehicle, we will find a packet in the glove compartment with pertinent information for the operator of that vehicle. It tells us important things like what hospital you will need to go to, what allergies you have, things that the first responders need to know to make sure that we don't make any mistakes, to make sure that we do things that enhance the quality of your life and save your life. Again, it's a program for all drivers. When we arrive on the scene, it's a communication vehicle that we can look into the glove compartment if we see the Yellow Dot sticker on your back window, knowing that this packet will be able to communicate for you if you, the driver, are not able to communicate. This is going to be the first of its kind in the state of Maine, and we look forward to bringing it to you in Cumberland County first. You may ask why Yellow Dot? Yellow Dot will assist first responders in their job of saving lives. It will save time. It will be the voice for the injured when they're unable to speak for themselves, and it will also help prepare for the future. How will Yellow Dot help you? It will allow the first responder to have pertinent personal and medical information when they arrive on scene regardless of the individual driving the vehicle's condition. It will also allow the first responder to use the golden hour to begin assisting the injured rather than trying to pry information out of them or searching for it from somebody else. The best part of it is it's no cost to the participant. In the event of an emergency, first responders can identify the vehicle as it has the Yellow Dot that they are participating in the program, and it will also know that it will be located in the same location on every vehicle in the lower left-hand side of the rear window of the vehicle. The Yellow Dot folder is something that we as first responders will be trained to know will be in the glove compartment of that vehicle. We'll know to look there for this information for the individuals who are in that vehicle driving or possibly a passenger. The information that will be provided on the packet will be the person's name, address, and home phone number and cell number if they wish to provide that information. The hospital that they prefer to go to, their blood type if that's something they want on the packet, and the other pieces that are extremely important are medications that are absolutely necessary. What we need to know are things that you may have an allergy to or something you're required to take that we all need within that golden hour. Also, if you have a child in the vehicle with you, it will speak to any condition they might have. It'll also direct us, the first responders, to who to call. We'll know who they, the driver, want to come pick up their child from the scene or let them know that they're at the hospital. Preparing for the future, again, this is a program for all drivers, not just senior citizens. What's next? We need to train our personnel to do the enrollment, recognize the Yellow Dot, and know where the informational packet is. We also need to train people in enrollment centers throughout the county to know exactly what to do so that when somebody leaves their location, not only do they have a packet filled out properly, they have a picture attached to it, and they also have the Yellow Dot sticker properly located on the back window of their vehicle. And then we need to host enrollment events. What's extremely important is to be able to sustain the program by having ongoing enrollment year round for people in every community. How can you help? You can help by being an enrollment center or being the helping hands at an enrollment center. This is not a difficult process. It's a very easy process. And somebody that comes into your location, whether you're a senior center, a community center, or a small business, that brings people in the door for you. But it also takes only three to five minutes to complete the work to make sure it's done accurately and completely. In summary, the Yellow Dot program can save precious seconds for all citizens in the state of Maine. Thank you.