The primary purpose of the
McGruff Safe House program is to identify homes to serve as a safe refuge for
children who are frightened, injured, lost, in danger, crime victims, or in an
emergency situation.
Who Should Apply?
- Persons having children
in elementary school
- Young married adults
without children
- Parents of high school
age youth
- Older persons
- Area businesses
- Anyone who resides in
the elementary school attendance area
How To Become A McGruff
House
Step 1.
Complete the McGruff Safe House
Application
Step 2. Pass
the law enforcement background check.
Step 3. A site visit will be made with a C.P.T.E.D.
(Crime
Prevention Through Environmental Design)
evaluation and a photo will be taken for the file.
Step 4. A pre-numbered McGruff Safe House sign will be
assigned to you.
Membership is reviewed and
renewed annually. Contact your area C.O.P.S. Substation or call 835-4572.
McGruff Safe House Application
McGruff Needs You! (flyer)
McGruff Still Biting Crime 20 Years Later!
Twenty-some
years ago, McGruff Safe Houses were
established all over Spokane, providing safe
havens for children who are locked out or in trouble.
Today, the houses are still around, but their numbers
have diminished significantly.
The program boasted more than
250 houses citywide in the past, but within the last few years, the
number dropped to 132 active participants.
There
are people out there that want to participate, but the
program isn't what it used to be. Part of this problem
is the declining number of staff dedicated to the program.
Spokane Police Department's Crime Prevention Unit had 4 staff working on
the prevention program. Unfortunately, the Crime
Prevention Unit was caught up in the budget cuts in 2004/2005, and the
McGruff House program was among the
programs that suffered the shortage of
personnel to nurture the program.
In 2006, Spokane
C.O.P.S. adopted the McGruff House program and is now proceeding to revitalize
the interest in helping protect our children in Spokane.
"McGruff
House participants need to be home during the morning
and afternoon hours to provide safe locations for
children to go in an emergency", said
Maurece Vulcano, Programs Manager for Spokane C.O.P.S. "When
adults think of emergency situations, we think of assault or kidnapping.
Kids think of being locked out, lost, hurt or frightened.
They need the security of knowing there is somewhere they can go in an
emergency."
As a result of the time
constraints, most volunteers work from home, work part-time
or are retired. Even with fewer
participants, the need for McGruff Houses remains
high. If every block had one,
there would be more safety for every child. There's
always a need for McGruff Houses. They're needed
not just in Spokane, but in all areas
where there are children.
Do they work?
Measuring the
effectiveness of McGruff Houses is a difficult task; there's really no way to do
it. McGruff Houses get used an average of once
every two years, though providers don't necessarily track each use accurately.
A participant may run a McGruff House
for years, and have no kids use it.
Although there may not be any
children using the McGruff House, you may want to
become a provider "just in case." The
important thing is to make sure kids feel safe in the
neighborhood.
Any way we can create
safety between people is very important. We need
to stick together and look out for the needs
of our children.
