Thursday, May 8, 2008

From the mouths of babes

A few times every week something happens that reminds me how much I enjoy my work, and how fortunate I am to have a calling in life. Last week, two boxes of cookies were dropped off at headquarters from the Eager Beavers, the children at Piedmont Park Seventh Day Adventist Church.

The half-life of a homemade cookie in the LPD assembly room is, well, short. I didn't move quickly enough, but the boxes stuffed with red tissue paper, the poster thanking police officers for helping God do His work, and the brightly-colored constrution paper cards from the kids were the real treat.


Inside each card, the children had listed a few reasons they were thankful for police officers. It looked like some kids got a little penmenship help from grown ups, but they were all sincere and precious. Det. Sgt. Erin Sims pointed out the gem--this message from a little one who shall remain nameless in order to protect her lead-footed parent:

"Thank you for always being around the corner to stop speeders like my mom."

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm glad these children have a positive view of the police and are being taught to respect law officers. I'm always surprised to hear negative comments about the police from people who don't have police records, never have contact with the police and are good citizens. Then they find out my husband's a cop and, well, I enjoy watching them squirm.

Anonymous said...

God do His work?
Is it correct to refer to God as a "HE"
i.e policeMAN fireMAN ect.
It is 2008 you know. Wait, the ACLU is coming, the ACLU is coming.

Tom Casady said...

9:56-

Lighten up. That's what the children wrote on the poster. I haven't used the word "policeman" in over 25 years.

Anonymous said...

Considering that some kids have mommy showing them how to load a bowl and smoke it, this is definitely an improvement in parenting. It's amazing what positive attitudes parents can help their kids develop, even in 2008.

Once they get to school, the SROs can reinforce this, because most people (including school-age kids) don't have much contact with LE unless they are either a crime victim - or breaking the law. It's like taking your dog to meet the vet for a friendly get-acquainted visit, instead of just going in and getting a shot at their first meet.

I just wish that LPS realized the value of coughing up the funding for a full-time SRO at each middle school. It'd be such a piddly amount compared to their annual budget.

Anonymous said...

You'd love some of the stories from the children in my 1st grade class....

Anonymous said...

It is nice to reed good news and the kids are geting a good edukation