EVENDALE, Ohio — They used to pack snacks for the car wash. That’s how far away it was. But they still did it every Saturday. Because Joshua Al-Lateef, Jr. loved it.
“We called it the field trip,” said Jonisa Cook, his mother.
Sitting in her car a few minutes away from that same car wash, she smiles.
“We’re going on a field trip,” Cook said.
Before they pull in, Cook reminds her kids to check the windows. Then, she locks them. Because Joshua always tried to roll them down.
“He used to touch the windows,” Cook said, tapping her nails on the driver’s side. “That was his thing.”
Green. Orange. Blue. The 6-year-old liked the colors inside the car wash. He liked the sound.
He liked the water.
On a recent afternoon, Cook brings her other children back to the car wash. And on the way there, they drive past the cemetery where Joshua is now buried.
See how this local mom is turning tragedy into solutions in the video below:
Joshua, who had autism, was considered non-verbal. Two days after he was reported missing in November, authorities found the boy in a pond near his West Chester home.
Since his death, Cook has tried to use her story to advocate for change. It’s why she joined a statewide missing persons group and pushed for automatic emergency notifications — like Amber Alerts — when kids like Joshua go missing.
“It’s irreplaceable,” said Andy Wilson, the director of Ohio’s Department of Public Safety, about her involvement in the group. “We can’t thank her enough for that.”
Wilson sat next to Cook at some of the meetings.
“I could hear her breathing get deeper. I could feel the emotional pain that she was experiencing,” Wilson told me. “I can’t imagine it was easy.”
It wasn’t. Because nothing has been.
“You could never be mad at Joshua, because he’s going to smile in your face or give you a hug,” Cook said. “He had the best hugs.”
She misses those hugs. And that’s why she’s at the car wash. Because the car wash is another reminder. Yes, it’s a reminder of her pain. But it’s also a reminder of the good times. The way Joshua tapped on the window and the way he’d smile. The way they’d all take turns picking music.
But more than anything, it’s a reminder to continue fighting for families like hers.
Last month, the public safety group released a series of recommendations. The first asked state legislators to mandate the use of an endangered missing child alert. The second directed Ohio’s highway patrol to make those alerts automatic when police officers enter certain information into their computer systems.
“Automatic notification certainly will save lives,” Wilson said.
Drowning is the leading cause of death for kids and adults with autism, according to the American Red Cross. Last year, at least 69 children with autism drowned. And last month, another 6-year-old drowned in a pool in Warren County.
After her son’s death, Cook and her family moved. And in their new apartment, Cook blows a kiss to a pillow with Joshua’s picture on it. Sometimes, she says it makes her sad. But most of the time, his smile makes her happy. She walks into the kitchen for a tissue.
“He wanted you to be proud of him,” Cook said. “And we were.”
Then, she pauses and looks up. There are tears in her eyes as she thinks about how she said that.
“We are.”
What’s next:
The director of Ohio’s Department of Public Safety tells me he believes an alert like this will become law — in part, because of Cook’s efforts.
A swim school in Florence is offering several scholarships in Joshua’s honor. An autism nonprofit gave away tracking devices, and the organization’s leaders are working with Cook to introduce legislation to require fences around certain ponds.
To donate to Cook’s family, visit any U.S. Bank branch and request to contribute to the Joshua Al-Lateef, Jr. Memorial fund.
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