BATAVIA
Sheriff’s Department and Wal-mart team up to recreate the “Shop with a Cop” event for kids who could not attend
The Genesee County Sheriff’s Department reached out to Wal-mart this past week to see if they could team up to recreate the “Shop with a Cop” event that was held last Saturday.
Two families who were scheduled to attend last weekend were unable to be there because of circumstances beyond their control.
Six deputies showed up today to take the children shopping for gifts.
“We are here to kinda do a re-do,” says Diane Waters, Wal-mart Store Manager.
“It’s something important to us and the officers. More importantly to these children and that they get to enjoy this, thats why we do this”
Each child gets a $100 gift card from law enforcement. The officers then go through the store and shop with the kids.
The gifts are then wrapped, the kids get a gift bag, a balloon and get to sit and talk with Santa.
Police reach out to the Wal-mart Foundation and apply for a grant each year.
This year $6,500 was allocated to the “Shop with Cop” program.
“They (officers) are allowed to spend it on anything they want to. It’s their choice to do a shop with a cop part of it,” says Waters.
“Based on the enjoyment last week, we didn’t want these kids to have to miss it all,” says Sgt.Thomas Sanfratello.
“It’s a positive thing so it’s something we want to do. It gives the kids a different perspective of us. They see us as something enjoyable instead of the negative you see on TV.”
“They can look at it as I had fun with the officer”