This year’s Shop with a Cop, sponsored by volunteers from the Gloucester County Sheriff’s Office, was “an overwhelming success,” said Sgt. Steve Perry, director of the program.
Ninety-three children and their families all met outside the Gloucester Walmart on Saturday morning, paired with law enforcement officers, and enthusiastically headed inside to the shopping aisles. Their purchases ranged from clothing to bicycles and everything in between.
“We had a ball,” said Perry.
The event involved more than 50 officers from the Gloucester Sheriff’s Office, Virginia State Police, Virginia Marine Police, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, Virginia ABC Law Enforcement, Williamsburg Police Department, and West Point Police Department, he said.
In addition to the 93 children who attended the day of the event, five families went shopping at a different time because of illness and other issues, said Perry. On top of that, three of the sheriff’s office’s four patrol shifts and the criminal patrol division adopted entire families, providing them with such things as Christmas trees and decorations and even playing Santa Claus.
The annual Shop with a Cop is funded completely by donations, said Perry, with the sheriff’s office needing to raise between $40,000 and $50,000 to have a successful event. He said the day would be impossible without the assistance of Walmart manager Rick Helton and his staff.
“They were incredible,” he said. “They do so very much to make sure these kids have a great day and wonderful memories.”
On top of that, “we have some of the best donors anybody could ask for,” said Perry. Many businesses and individuals contribute to help fulfill Shop with a Cop’s two-part mission of helping Gloucester County kids in need and uniting vulnerable youth with the officers that are there to serve them every day.
“Some of these kids may have interacted with a cop in a negative way,” said Perry, “because, after all, nobody calls a cop on a good day.”
Children are selected through an application process, with 250 total children applying this year, he said, adding, “We had to make some very difficult choices, working with the resources and volunteers we have.” He said there are other volunteer organizations in Gloucester that are also focused on “trying to do right by people in need,” and they work together to make sure no one gets left out.
One of the most gratifying aspects of the day, said Perry, is the involvement of youth organizations such as NJROTC, the Key Club, the Beta Club, and the National Honor Society. He said sometimes the volunteers were previously part of Shop with a Cop because their families were in need. But the families began doing better and the children decided to come back and help out.
“It’s really a heartwarming day,” said Perry. “We look forward to this all year long.”