Photo provided by the Michigan State Police State police outfit vehicles with calming kits to help people with autism METRO DETROIT — April is Autism Awareness Month, and the Michigan State Police is joining with other law enforcement agencies to not only raise awareness about autism, but also include new calming bags in their patrol vehicles. The calming bags will be given out to people on the autism spectrum or their families, if desired. They are designed to help people with autism cope with the often stressful nature of interacting with first responders. “With any community that we want to reach out to, there are communication barriers,” explained Lt. Sarah Krebs, of the Michigan State Police. “This is one of the ways to bridge that gap with the autistic community. We want to train our officers to recognize common signs of autism and how to interact with them in constructive, positive ways. Bright lights and loud sirens can be intimidating to an autistic child, and if we are there, they may be going through a very difficult day already, so this helps us bridge that gap and lets us introduce ourselves as people who are there to help. Plus, they get a bag of some cool stuff.”