20th Annual Shop With A Cop 2010
How time flies! I can hardly believe it, twenty years and still going strong. It’s hard to imagine that those first kids who participated probably have children of their own — even the kids who participated in 2000 are now young adults. However, the joy that this event brings is timeless.
Little America was once again the place to be at 6:00 am. Officers milled about waiting to be paired with a child. The kids, escorted in by parents, were registered and received their official T-shirts. They had barely pulled their shirts over their heads when Chief Burbank, known for recruiting only the best, was there to introduce himself.
Next, the kids moved into the banquet room where the Little America staff had once again provided an amazing array of goodies. Once inside, the kids were faced with some tough decisions — muffin or donut, milk or juice? They were reassured that it was okay to have one of each.
The children who are chosen for this program, besides meeting the requirement of fiscal need, may have experienced a negative situation with law enforcement. It is usually a parent or older sibling that has been involved — someone close to them. One of the hopes of the program is to give the child a different perspective in which to see the police officer. The positive relationships forged by these officers and kids is testimony that the program works and has done so for the past twenty years.
After breakfast everyone heads for the cars parked on 500 South. Once inside the patrol cars, and with lights and sirens ablaze they head out, making their way to the West Jordan K-Mart. Kids, cops and Santa all arrived at K-mart simultaneously, ready to start what for twenty years now has been a special event for everybody involved.
There were so many choices to make as new shoes, warm boots, gloves, and coats were tried on. New jeans were a must for the boys and it never fails that our boys in blue end up cruising the pink aisle with a pretty little girl trying to choose between a Brat and Barbie.
After checking out, the wrapping area becomes a whirlwind of activity, paper and ribbon at the ready as the wrappers perform their magic applying glitter and glitz to all those presents. All of this donated by K-Mart. By the end of the shopping spree, even some of the most energized were just a bit “tuckered out.” Some waited to see Santa, and some waited for their parents, but by the end, everyone had a great day and were ready to go home.
We want to send a special ‘Thank You’ to all of our volunteers: Officers who come from jurisdictions all over the valley and beyond; the staff at Little America who provide our breakfast goodies and clean up all the crumbs after we’re gone; our volunteer wrappers; our board members who organize and make this happen every year; and last, but not least, those individuals and businesses who donate the funds for this event.