歪歪漫画

BEMIDJI 鈥� Owen Chan has a simple mission in life 鈥� to change the world one piece at a time.

The passionate 12-year-old inspired his parents, Jennifer and Joshua Chan, to start , a nonprofit initiative based out of their home in Glenwood, Minn.

Bit of Grace aims to empower communities by providing sensory kits to law enforcement and other public safety agencies. The kits are tools to facilitate communication with individuals facing autism, sensory processing disorders or other socio-emotional challenges during crisis situations.

Courtesy / Bit of Grace

Bit of Grace recently traveled to the Beltrami County Law Enforcement Center with a delivery of sensory kits for the to aid in proactive community engagement. Through community support and donations, Bit of Grace ensures these kits reach those who need them most.

The kits themselves are comprehensive, featuring fidget spinners, poppers, communication boards, bubble timers and noise-canceling headphones. Each item was carefully chosen to assist in crisis deescalation and communication with individuals who may become nonverbal and/or anxious.

The inspiration for Bit of Grace came unexpectedly. Jennifer recounts that her husband did an autism education video with his New York colleague and fellow autism dad, Matthew Yelton, who had developed a sensory kit himself.

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11-year-old boy with autism drives effort to outfit law enforcement with emergency sensory kits

The Sauk Rapids Police Department recently received the kits, which contain communication and sensory tools to help bridge the gap between law enforcement and the autism community.

Dec 31, 1969

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By  Stephanie Dickrell

鈥淗e asked if we would be interested in seeing it and sent us one,鈥� Jennifer recalled. 鈥淥wen, our son, was captivated by it. This moment sparked the question, 鈥業s this something we should do here?鈥欌��

With community support surging after a social media post by Joshua, Bit of Grace was born.

When it came to the driving force for them, Jennifer said that while community support was a big part of it, much of the inspiration to move forward came from their own experiences with autism as well.

鈥淲e had an official diagnosis for Owen when he was between 4 to 5 years old and at that point, we just got very isolated,鈥� she explained.

It got to the point where the family struggled to even leave the house or do what used to be basic activities.

"When we got this kit, I remember thinking, 'This would help people' because it gives others tools immediately that may be successful in figuring out how to communicate,鈥� Jennifer reflected.

They began prepping for the kits in 2023, then Jennifer brought some ideas to her family hospital to get feedback from health care providers.

鈥淎nd I鈥檓 like 鈥榃hat do you think we鈥檙e missing, is this reasonable?鈥� And really got their feedback,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey are the ones that suggested the bubble timer and one of the big additions that we added are the little lightsaber biters. We have gotten feedback that the first bag usage was for a non-verbal adult. The provider actually said, 鈥業 felt like we bonded.鈥欌��

Courtesy / Bit of Grace

Bemidji is not the only city they鈥檝e added to their list of partners. Beginning locally in Glenwood, they expanded to further reaches of Minnesota to include Alexandria, St. Cloud, Kensington, Sauk Rapids and Forada, to name a few. They鈥檝e even delivered some kits to Region 6 Behavioral Healthcare in Omaha, Neb.

Jennifer explained that as a parent of a child with developmental disabilities, your learning never ceases. She also highlighted her attendance at a training, facilitated by the

鈥淚t鈥檚 a program that鈥檚 put on to help empower caregivers and parents with kiddos with disabilities,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he most powerful pieces I took away from that were the individuals themselves that were there that were learning and advocating on their own behalf.鈥�

That training helped her develop more confidence in raising awareness about these topics.

鈥淒ue to that particular training, I just became louder within our own community or having Owen participate in his own IEP meetings or his mental health treatment plans or even with his county caseworkers. He is an active part of those,鈥� she added.

Bit of Grace's journey reflects a community-driven approach to inclusivity and support.

鈥淓ducation and intervention, especially early interventions if you can, is crucial in teaching parents and caregivers how these humans work, 鈥� Jennifer left off.

To learn more about Bit of Grace or to donate to the Chan family鈥檚 grassroots efforts, visit