PHOENIX — Jaxon Behnke means everything to his dad, Justin.
"He's taught me more about life than life itself and I learn something new every day, you know, being his dad," said Justin Behnke.
Twelve-year-old Jaxon is on the autism spectrum. He's also non-verbal.
"I'll tell you right now, I understand everything he's doing, and I can, and he can communicate to me and that's the craziest part," said Behnke.
However, as Jaxon has gotten older, some challenges have come up.
"He is a runner. I mean, you guys have seen him just now. Like, he gets a chance to get out that door, he'll end up on 7th Street and Indian School," added Behnke.
Justin speaks from experience. A few years ago, his worst fear surfaced.
"We were at the Great Wolf Lodge one day and you know we're thinking he's up on the slide hanging out... and realized about a minute and 30 seconds, maybe even 30 seconds later, who knows? He's not there, and sheer panic went in, you know where you're looking for him and you're like, 'OK, where did he go?'" said Behnke.
"What's that like, in that instant where you just don't know?" asked ABC15's Javier Soto.
"It's empty. It's scary and then, where? Where do we go first? So, it's frightening for sure," Behnke replied.
That frightening event fed into his invention of 'Scan Me Home.' Users can create a profile, register their information, and then iron on the Scan Me Home QR code to any piece of clothing. Once someone scans the QR code, the information pops up, including a prompt to call their emergency contact.
Diana Diaz-Harrison is the founder of Arizona Autism Charter Schools. She tells us many children on the autism spectrum have "elopement behavior," meaning they are prone to running away or wandering off.
"When you first heard about Scan Me Home, what were your thoughts?" asked Soto.
"What a great idea. You know, why hasn't someone else thought of this?" Diaz-Harrison replied.
"This is a true solution and just peace of mind because more than likely they are going to squirrel away at some point, but then you know that all their info is on that QR code and that a person in the community would more than likely scan it and reach the parent right away," Diaz-Harrison said.
"...It just gives you a chance, and it gives you a chance right now, right? Not five hours from now, not 10 hours from now, not 45 minutes. If you get my kid, we know he's not where he's supposed to be. We see a QR code. Like again, we're gonna probably check out what that means," said Behnke.
He says the biggest thing he's hoping for right now is just to raise awareness about his products so people know what to do if they ever come across someone with the Scan Me Home QR code tag.
To learn more about the products, visit ScanMeHome.com.
-
Valley woman advocates for breast cancer awareness year-round
Raising awareness for breast cancer doesn't just have to happen in October, says a Valley woman who helps coordinate events throughout the year to educate people about the disease.
Google announces donation for Arizona water restoration project
Google announced it would donate $600,000 to the nonprofit Trout Unlimited for a water restoration project in Apache County as part of its goal to replenish more freshwater than it consumes by 2030.
Group continues restoration work in area still recovering from 2011 Wallow Fire
So many Arizonans remember the devastation that was caused back in 2011, with more than half a million acres burning along the Arizona-New Mexico border in the White Mountains.
