{"id":9437,"date":"2013-12-15T10:01:54","date_gmt":"2013-12-15T15:01:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=9437"},"modified":"2013-12-15T10:01:33","modified_gmt":"2013-12-15T15:01:33","slug":"start-to-finish-shop-with-cop-a-blast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=9437","title":{"rendered":"From start to finish, ‘Shop with a Cop’ proves a blast"},"content":{"rendered":"

Collaborative, community-involved event draws rave reviews<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

By Kathleen Brady Shea<\/span><\/strong>, Managing Editor, The Times<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Coatesville<\/a>

Coatesville Cpl. Jonathan Shave offers assistance to his shopper at the price-checker. Behind him, Det. Kevin Campbell waits for his turn.<\/p><\/div>\n

Throngs of unsuspecting customers grabbed parking spaces and shopping carts to brave the bustling crowd at Walmart on Saturday morning, oblivious to the pending invasion.<\/p>\n

A little before 10 a.m., shoppers looked up in alarm as wailing sirens and flashing lights pierced the frigid air. Within minutes, two school buses – escorted by a caravan of more than 40 emergency vehicles – unloaded 65 excited children. Spectators\u2019 concerns quickly dissipated as word spread throughout the store: It’s \u201cShop with a Cop.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now in its 11th<\/sup> year, the eagerly-awaited program gives underserved children a shopping spree with a local uniformed police officer or deputy sheriff. Selected by social-service agencies and school counselors, the young consumers receive a spending limit of $100 and are encouraged to buy gifts for relatives, friends, and themselves. Then they are turned loose with an officer wielding a shopping cart who doubles as a gift consultant and financial advisor.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>

An assembly line of volunteers helps make the wrapping portion of the program go smoothly.<\/p><\/div>\n

Like many of the dozens of volunteers who make the event happen, Donald Folks repeated his role as the emcee and grand matchmaker, pairing up the young shoppers with a law-enforcement partner. \u201cThis is something I\u2019ve just got to do,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s just great to see\u201d the interaction between the officers and children.<\/p>\n

In fact, watching the drama unfold invariably lengthened many customers\u2019 shopping expeditions as they found themselves transfixed by the male officers\u2019 befuddlement in the Barbie aisle or the traffic jams at the price-checker.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you know where you\u2019re going?\u201d asked Coatesville Det. Shawn Dowds as his young charge nodded, making a beeline for the toy department. \u201cOK, then, I\u2019m following you,\u201d said Dowds.<\/p>\n

Coatesville Police Chief Jack Laufer, who brought his wife and daughter to assist, also found himself with a well-organized spender. \u201cShe definitely knows what she wants,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m just going along.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nearby, Valley Township Police Chief Joseph Friel demonstrated why the excursion also served as a math lesson: He used his cell phone calculator to help his bargain-hunter stay within budget.<\/p>\n

\"Coatesville<\/a>

Coatesville Det. Shannon Miller offers assistance to her shopper in the popular Barbie section.<\/p><\/div>\n

Michele Serbin, the Walmart manager, said the employees look forward to the event as much as the kids do. She said the store has participated since the beginning. \u201cIt\u2019s all about the kids,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re just glad to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Serbin said her employees do a fair amount of explaining to customers. After all, it isn\u2019t every day that dozens of men and women in blue cavort around the store with elves and Santa Claus. Even Bouc, the K-9 partner of West Caln Township Police Chief Curt Martinez, made a crowd-pleasing appearance.<\/p>\n

Despite the hubbub, the public reaction remained positive. \u201cPeople love hearing about it,\u201d Serbin said.<\/p>\n

Tonnette Maxie, a Valley Township resident, said she was delighted to see that the program was still operating. \u201cI think it\u2019s awesome what they are doing,\u201d she said, adding that her family once benefited. \u201cIt helped us out so much. It\u2019s a great thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coatesville Police Sgt. Rodger Ollis, one of the many organizers, said two of the main sponsors are the Witmer Public Safety Group, Inc., which operates the Fire Store, Officer Store, and EMS store, and Hope Beyond Borders, a Coatesville-based nonprofit that focuses on youth development. He said the Witmers raised the bulk of the money, and the nonprofit dispersed it. New this year was a breakfast, which was organized by Hope Beyond Borders.<\/p>\n

\"Emcee<\/a>

Taking a brief break from directing traffic, “Shop with a Cop” emcee Donald Folks poses with Santa in hopes of getting to take Mickey Mouse home.<\/p><\/div>\n

Jim Witmer said he and his wife, Ruth, give their employees the chance to wear jeans on Fridays for a $2 donation and then match whatever amount the workers raise. This year\u2019s total – $15,000 \u2013 was the highest to date, he said. \u201cWe love doing it. The kids are so excited; just look at their faces,\u201d he said as a bike and a beaming boy zipped past him. \u201cIt\u2019s awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ollis said generous donations also came from the West End Fire Company, Exelon Power Labs, Krapf\u2019s Buses, and the Police Benevolent Association. Another vital component: volunteers.<\/p>\n

Besides the shopping assistants, dozens of people helped behind the scenes, Ollis said, from the advance preparations to the ongoing activities for the children when they\u2019re weren\u2019t shopping to the final gift-wrapping station. Representatives of the Coatesville Youth Initiative, Masons Lily of the Valley Lodge #59, and the Chester County Safe Kids Coalition all performed a variety of duties, he said.<\/p>\n

Even better: It was all unsolicited, Ollis said. \u201cI don\u2019t have to call and beg anyone to help,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople call me to ask what they can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sgt.<\/a>

Sgt. Rodger Ollis helps his shopper sort through a large bin \u00a0of DVDs to make the right selection. Later, the purchase would be wrapped by a crew that included his wife, Michele.<\/p><\/div>\n

Equally heart-warming were some of this year\u2019s donors, Ollis said. He said one check came from a woman who happened to be in the Walmart during last year\u2019s event and felt the magic. \u201cThat was pretty neat,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Another special donation resulted from somber circumstances: the recent death of Dennis D. Campbell, a\u00a0senior manager at \u00a0QVC and\u00a0the father of Coatesville Det. Kevin Campbell.\u00a0 In lieu of flowers, his family sought donations to Shop with a Cop in his memory.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother Neal is a police officer in Upper Merion, and my dad was so proud of both of us,\u201d explained the detective. \u201cIt just seemed like the right thing to do \u2026 the kind of thing he would definitely appreciate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sentiment proved apt since appreciation from the kids was on full display, typified by the experience of Deputy Sheriff Janis Pickell, who seemed to be steering her cart around in circles.<\/p>\n

Pickell said every time her shopper asked if the item she had just found represented her last purchase, she changed her mind when Pickell said yes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think she just doesn\u2019t want this to end,\u201d Pickell whispered.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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