news release

You don’t need an advanced degree to know that children fear law enforcement officers. Media portrayals often don’t help to change that misconception. However, on the Treasure Coast, though, law enforcement agencies work hard throughout the year to create a positive and trusting relationship with the children of the community. Through school visits, sporting programs, community activities, and personal interactions, many children are learning that law enforcement officers are here to help in ways that don’t include sirens or flashing lights…unless maybe they are holiday lights. Each year, members of the St. Lucie and Indian County Sheriff’s Offices set aside one wonderful day to spend shopping with children in the community who might otherwise not have such an opportunity, and the results are heartwarming and life-changing for children and officers alike.

Working with School Resource Officers, children throughout each county are identified and paired with a member of law enforcement who will serve as guide, mentor, and personal shopping buddy on a very special trip to Walmart. In Indian River County, 100 students will be paired with Sheriff’s Deputies who will spend the morning shopping for holiday gifts for themselves and others. Eighty children in St. Lucie County will experience the same joyful shopping trip and make a memory and a positive connection that will last for a very long time.

And it’s not just the children who benefit from the connection made with law enforcement officers during the Shop with a Cop festivities. Each year, even the crustiest deputies whose jobs cause them to often see the worst side of humanity, find that their hearts melt from joy when the child they’re shopping with rushes not to the toy or video game aisle to make their first purchase of the special day, but instead makes a beeline for a gift for a parent, sibling, or beloved caregiver. It’s a magical day for the children and the adults, and it’s a glimpse for both to see the best in one another and the season. It’s also an easy selection for the December Dyer Difference Award in both St. Lucie and Indian River County, where each Sheriff’s Office received $3,000 to help fund this year’s Shop with a Cop program.

The Dyer Difference Award is all about celebrating the beauty and kindness in our midst. For the Dyer family and the members of the Dyer staff, the award and the $6,000 in donations made monthly between the St. Lucie and Indian River Counties are all about helping to make a positive difference in the community. For the recipients, it’s an acknowledgement of their tireless efforts to do the same and a much-needed financial boost to help further their missions. If you’d like to nominate a non-profit organization for the Dyer Difference Award, please visit http://www.dyerdifference.org or find Dyer Difference on Facebook.