Memorable Christmas - Shop with a Cop

It was all smiles as High Springs police officers, staff and area children participated in the first ever High Springs "Shop with a Cop" event at the Walmart on U.S. Highway 441 in Gainesville.

Eleven High Springs children woke up on Monday, Dec. 22, and quickly remembered they were about to be the first children in their city to take part in a program that would lead to a fun-filled and fabulous pre-Christmas Day. They were the lucky participants to take advantage of a new program sponsored by the High Springs Police Department (HSPD) called “Shop with a Cop.”

Although the idea is not new, it is new to High Springs. It is a concept Officer Adam Joy brought to the department. The idea began as a spark when Joy asked permission to take two children shopping for their own Christmas gifts at his expense. When some of the other officers heard about the idea, they offered to donate money so Joy could take more than two children on a shopping spree.

“I thought if they were willing to donate the money, they should go along and see the delight on the children’s faces for themselves,” said Joy.

HSPD was already involved in raising funds and gifts for “Operation Holiday Cheer” when Joy brought his “Shop with a Cop” idea forward. Despite that fact, Acting Chief Antoine Sheppard gave the go-ahead for the interested officers to proceed with a small group of children to see if the new program would prove successful. That decision fanned Joy's initial spark into a small flame.

Once they received the go-ahead, the officers were off and running. They managed to raise quite a bit of money in a remarkably short time. They donated funds themselves, as that was their idea in the first place, but they also received donations from the High Springs Historic Society and several other private donors who heard about the project.

Joy checked back with Walmart on U.S. 441 in Gainesville, the store he had originally contacted about the program, to confirm details a few days before the children were to arrive for their shopping trip.

“I was surprised when the store's management said they would be delighted to provide breakfast for the children and would also donate a $25 gift card per child towards the purchase of gifts for each,” said Joy. “That got us to our goal of being able to offer a $100 gift amount to each child,” he said.

Knowing in advance where they were going to be shopping, some families brought their children to the store a day or two early to look for the item(s) they wanted. Some had their hearts set on just one or two treasures...a bicycle and helmet or a tablet...while others took the more is more approach. Walmart department managers were available when needed with their handy scan guns to bring a bit of dollars and cents reality to the situation. Some children had to decide which items in their cart were most important to them in order to stay within their allotted amount.

Some children sought out items not only for themselves, but also to give or share with other family members. So as not to spoil the surprise, no names will be disclosed. One thoughtful child who had chosen items for other members of his family said he was purchasing a movie because he wanted to watch it with his dad.

The children who benefited from this year's “Shop with a Cop” program were chosen at random as officers encountered them while on patrol, said Joy.

“Walmart made everything possible,” said Joy, who admits he didn't give the company much notice this year. “Next year we have been advised to apply for a Walmart grant, which we intend to do, and hope to be able to take more children along on our next “Shop with a Cop” trip,” he said.

It appears Walmart may have fanned Joy's tiny spark into a full-fledged fire as he is clearly already thinking about ways to expand the program next year.

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