‘It’s a lifesaver’: Philadelphia parent and advocates want more stores to have shopping carts for children with special needs

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At one point, Constance Jones used to dread grocery shopping.

Her 7-year-old son Austen has autism. Last year, he had to stay in a hospital because of a genetic condition, and struggled to walk after he came home.

Jones either had to find someone to take care of her son while she went shopping, or she had to find a shopping cart that would fit her son.

“If he’s doing a lot of walking and he’s complaining about it, I don’t want to be upset with him as a parent just because he’s in some sort of pain or he’s going through something that I don’t know about,” Jones said.

Sometimes, she had to put Austen in the main compartment of the shopping cart, and use the limited space below for groceries.

But it is very different if she goes to a grocery store with a special type of shopping cart called Caroline’s Cart. This cart has a large seat in the back, facing the person pushing the cart. It comes with a seat belt to secure the person in the seat, and can fit people who weigh up to 250 pounds. It’s intended for older children with special needs, or even adults.

“It’s a lifesaver. The moment I see these carts, I’m like, ‘Thank God,'” Jones said.

She said there are some grocery stores that she goes to, like ShopRite in Northeast Philadelphia, that have the special carts. But they are not always easy to find, and parents and caregivers who need one may not know if a shop has one or not.

“I want other parents to be able to know that this exists in these stores. They can request them if … they need them and not to feel ashamed to have to use it because sometimes … it’s a little embarrassing when it already feels like we have to ask for help to even use them.”

Drew Ann Long, the founder and creator of Caroline’s Cart, said that all around the country, the carts are still not as accessible as they should be.

“You don’t hide the fun carts. You don’t hide the electric scooters. Why the heck are you keeping Caroline’s Cart in the storage room?” she said.

She named the cart after her daughter Caroline, who was born with a disability and inspired Long to design it. Long said that even though Caroline’s Cart has been around for more than a decade, she is still working to get more stores to buy the carts for customers.

“I created a product that the consumer wanted, but the consumer couldn’t buy it,” Long said.

Two years ago, Walmart announced that all stores in several states in the South and Southwest will have Caroline’s Carts. Target said most of their stores have at least one.

In the Philadelphia region, Giant said in a statement that the company introduced Caroline’s Carts a few years ago, and they remain available today. WakeFern, the parent company of ShopRite and Fresh Grocer, did not respond to a request for comment.

The Arc of Pennsylvania, a state chapter of a national advocacy group for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, had talked about approaching the big grocery stores in the state to see how many have Caroline’s Carts. However, it would take a lot of effort, said Jessica Capitani, a communications consultant and former board president.

She used to specifically look for stores in her area that have Caroline’s Carts. Her son has Down syndrome and juvenile idiopathic arthritis and had to use a wheelchair at one point, but Capitani could not push a shopping cart and a wheelchair at the same time.

“I would find myself crying in stores at times because it was just so difficult to try to shop with him,” she said. “When I knew a store had Caroline’s Carts that just changed everything.”

The efforts to expand access to these carts continue.

A few months ago, the Arc announced every Caroline’s Cart in the country will have a sticker showing the organization’s logo, and a QR code that people can scan to request more carts in their local stores.