Sheriff’s Dept. offers ‘senior check-in’ program in Ogle County

The Senior Check-In Program allows you to check on the well being of seniors in Ogle County. An Ogle County Sheriff’s Office employee will call the senior once a week on a scheduled day and time, and make sure they are doing okay. The Senior Check-In Program offers you some peace of mind and lets the senior know someone cares.

To qualify for the program, the senior must live alone AND not have family members nearby to check on them.

To join the program yourself or to enter a senior in the program, please fill out the application, save it to your desktop, and then email the document to [email protected]. You can also print the application and mail it to: Senior Check-In Program, Ogle County Sheriff’s Office, 202 S. 1st St., Oregon, IL 61061. If you don’t have access to a computer, call us at 815-732-1101 and we will mail you an application.

On the application, you’ll be required to provide emergency contacts. These contacts will only be known by those in the dispatch center. The dispatch center will call those emergency contacts if the senior does not answer the phone during their scheduled appointment.

Frequently asked questions

Q: What if I want someone to check in on my elderly mom and I live all the way in Iowa? Can I still enter her in the program?

A: Yes, as long as your mom lives in Ogle County.

Q: I’m worried about my neighbor who is getting up there in age. She doesn’t seem to have any family around to help her. Can I sign her up?

A: The senior needs to be aware of and agree to be in the program. Once we have a completed application from the senior they will be in the program.

Q: What if the senior simply forgets they have an appointment for the check-in? Do alarm bells go off? Does that prompt a police response? What if they are actually hurt or in need?

A: We will make three attempts to contact the senior. If there’s no answer, the Ogle County Sheriff’s Office 911 Communications Center will try to contact the emergency contacts listed on the application.

If an emergency contact is reached they will be asked to check on the senior. If we can’t reach any of the emergency contacts, a deputy (or police officer if you live within a municipality) will go check on the senior.

Q: Will every senior be accepted into the program? What would disqualify them?

A: Seniors must live in Ogle County, must not have any family members who can check on them within 50 miles from where they live, and must want to be in the program.

Q: What if the senior goes on vacation?

A: They can email [email protected] or call 815-732-1101 to send their vacation days so we know they will not be home for a scheduled call.

Q: What if we don’t want to be in the program anymore?

A: Just email [email protected] or call 815-732-1101 to give us the date that you no longer wish to be in the program.