The Arc of Washington County was granted funds to host a garden party with first responders in Hagerstown. The gardening event hosted by the Arc is meant to promote awareness and relationships between first responders and people with disabilities.
The event came to life after an incident in 2013 involving a man with disabilities and law enforcement. Ethan Saylor was a young man in Frederick county who had some behavior challenges. One day at a local movie theatre, Saylor was involved with the police, was restrained and ended up dying from the situation.
There were many different learning experiences throughout the day. Individuals tell us what they learned about police officers and fire fighters.
“If your house is on fire, they put the fire out,” David Goforth said, who attends Arc of Washington County. Emergency responders answered every question thrown at them, in addition to teaching the crowd what they do every day. They say, it’s a privilege to get to know and understand members of the community.