MyListResortGuide
Wandering safety information, ready before you need it
Many autistic children and some adults leave safe settings without warning. Families who live with that reality know the preparation is unglamorous: it is information, current and findable, in more hands than yours. This guide covers the information half, and points you to the organization that covers the rest properly.
Start with the Big Red Safety Box
The National Autism Association's Big Red Safety Box is the standard resource for wandering prevention and response: caregiver checklists, an emergency plan, ID materials, alert forms for neighbors and first responders. It is free. If wandering is a concern in your family, get it first; everything below is the keeping-it-current half, not a substitute.
The information that matters
Responders and neighbors work from what you can hand them in the first minutes: a current printed photo, a plain description, how your child communicates and whether they respond to their name, the places they head for, and especially any water nearby, because water is the danger this community prepares for above all others. Add what calms them, what makes things worse, and the numbers to call in order. Write it in your words; a stranger will be reading them out loud.
Paper first, and dated
The printed card and the filled-in emergency plan do the crisis work: they can be handed to a police officer, taped inside a neighbor's door, kept in the school office. Date every copy. When you update the photo or a number, replace the old printouts, because the copy in the drawer does not update itself.
Where a shared list helps
The failure mode of safety information is staleness, and staleness is a coordination problem: the sheet exists, but only one person maintains it and nobody else knows which version is current. Keeping the source copy as a shared list in MyListResort, the Care guide template's Emergency basics section, means the other parent and the regular caregivers read the same current version, and a reminder on a Renewals list can nudge the twice-a-year refresh. Print from what is current, hand out the paper, and call 911 first in any real emergency. Nothing in this app contacts anyone by itself.
FAQ
What information should be ready before a wandering emergency?
A current printed photo, a plain physical description including what they are wearing today where possible, how they communicate and respond to their name, the places they tend to head for and any water nearby, what calms them and what makes things worse, and the phone numbers that matter in order. Prepared while things are calm, it is minutes saved when they are not.
What is the Big Red Safety Box?
A free toolkit from the National Autism Association for families concerned about wandering: caregiver checklists, an emergency plan template, ID and alert materials, and prevention resources. It is the standard we point families to first; this guide is preparation for the information side, not a replacement for it.
Does MyListResort alert police or track location?
No. MyListResort is a list app: nothing in it contacts anyone by itself, and it does not do location tracking or alerts. In an emergency, call 911 first. What a list is good for is making sure the information a responder needs exists, is current, and is where other caregivers can find it.
Is any of this paid?
No. Safety content on this site is free and stays free, and keeping this kind of information in a shared list is part of the free plan. That is a commitment, not a promotion.
How often should the information be refreshed?
Photos and descriptions age fast with kids: a copy from two years ago describes a different child. Date every copy, put a reminder on refreshing it twice a year, and replace old printouts when you do. A stale sheet found in a drawer mid-crisis is worse than knowing you need to make one.
More for care households: the Care & routines templates · a care sheet a sitter can follow · the renewal dates that run the year