Officers from 5X社区 Police Services have always had a 鈥減rotect and serve鈥 philosophy, and recently, they put this philosophy in action in order to help families in need.
Each year, the department holds a Glow, Grow and Give fundraiser throughout November to raise money for a worthy cause. The staff members can donate $30, and in return, they may grow out beards (for men), dye their hair pink or blue or paint their fingernails.
鈥淭hese are things that are normally against department regulation, so it鈥檚 a real treat for us to be able to express ourselves,鈥 says Officer Shauntya Brown. 鈥淧lus, it鈥檚 always for a great cause.鈥
This year, the fundraiser allowed the officers to purchase 25 frozen turkeys and $200 in gift cards from ACME Market for Kent Social Services to give to local families in need over the holiday season. Every year, Kent Social Services partners with the Center of Hope in Ravenna, which distributes about 800 turkeys and food boxes throughout the area.
鈥淓veryone should have access to a hot meal during the holidays,鈥 says Marquice Seward, assistant programming manager of Kent Social Services. 鈥淲e just try to do whatever we can to make that happen.鈥
Ms. Seward also says the police department鈥檚 donation will make a huge difference to families in Kent and Ravenna.
鈥淎ll of our 800 turkeys come from outside donations,鈥 Ms. Seward says. 鈥淒onations like these really go a long way. That (includes) 25 families that will benefit specifically from Kent State Police Services鈥 generosity. It鈥檚 very heartwarming that people come together and make a difference because this is how we do it.鈥
Kent State Police Services Officer Vance Voyles, who arranged the contributions with Kent Social Services, says the donations inspire the officers as much as they do the recipients.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important to realize that everybody wants to help national and global causes, but we have a lot of things going on locally that need our help,鈥 Officer Voyles says.
Bill Buckbee, Kent State鈥檚 assistant chief of police, believes the officers benefit by seeing where their contributions are going.
鈥淚n the past, we鈥檝e donated to more nationally based programs, but we didn鈥檛 really get to see the impact,鈥 Assistant Chief Buckbee says. 鈥淭his year, we wanted to do something that was local and had a direct influence on our community.鈥
Officer Brown says that fundraising and service projects like this are one of her favorite parts of the job.
鈥淧olice Services does a fantastic job of emphasizing the 鈥榮erve鈥 aspect of our 鈥榩rotect and serve鈥 motto,鈥 Officer Brown says. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important that people know that. What I love about my job is that I genuinely help make my local community a better place.鈥
The Grow, Glow and Give fundraiser will continue throughout December and will include a pancake breakfast with Santa for the LIFE Program for single parents on campus. Each child will receive a gift and pictures with Santa, and each parent will receive a small present with a gift card 鈥 all funded by the Kent State Police Services鈥 fundraiser.
For more information about Kent State Police Services, visit www.kent.edu/publicsafety/police-services.