Shop with a Cop 2014

Each year one our favorite ways to give back is by helping make sure the Shop With a Cop event in our local community goes on. For years now, it's given many children from low income families the chance to get a $100 shopping spree to buy Christmas gifts for family and friends.

First, they start out with a family breakfast, where the kids come with Mom, Dad, brothers/sisters in tow and get a photo with Santa and enjoy some good food (and musical entertainment!)

Then, a massive parade a few miles down the road to the local WalMart happens, with sirens and police cars, and busses to transport the children. It causes a big, fun commotion and makes everyone feel special.

They are escorted around the building with a 'shopping buddy' who happens to be a local police officer and the kids LOVE it. So do the police officers! 

All our employees get the chance to help make this event possible. Each Friday they pay to wear jeans to the officer. That 'jeans money' goes into the Shop With A Cop fund, therefore allowing that program to go on.

On the day of the event, many of our employees, our CEO, Vice President show up to Walmart to help wrap the gifts that the kids will then take home to hide until Christmas morning.

These days it's no secret that the relationship between police officers and the community is important. Putting faces and personalities to the children, and the children putting faces and personalities to the Officers. It's an important event and we are so very glad to be a part of making this special day possible.

Thanks to everyone who made the 2014 Shop With a Cop event go smoothly. There are 64 children who now will have a happier Christmas because of it, and we're glad to be a part of it.

Shop with a Cop 2013 Recap

All year long, our employees pay a few dollars to wear jeans on Friday. Those few dollars quickly add up to a fund that we keep for our yearly Shop With a Cop program that is then matched by Witmer Public Safety Group. Essentially, a few bucks to wear jeans adds up to making the Christmas season very bright for 65 of our young children in our city who otherwise wouldn't have had the opportunity.

This event is one we look forward to all year! It starts with a great breakfast at a local church, where the families are welcomed to get photos together, Santa and his Elves come for a visit, and the big parade send off begins.

You can feel the excitement in the room as the children gear up for a big spending-spree at our local Walmart, with the local police officers buzzing around the room, meeting the families, and enjoying the fun of the event, too.

After a fun parade, lights and sirens blaring up the road, they arrive at the store where each cop is paired with a child. Off they go with $100 to spend, Christmas shopping for loved ones!

While all that fun is going on, little elves (aka: Awesome Volunteers from TheFireStore and a partnering Church) are busy wrapping all the presents in the warehouse so no one can peek once they get home.

It is truly an amazing event that kicks your holiday spirit in high gear, knowing that you're putting lots of smiles on children's faces during the most special time of year. 

We want to thank our loyal employees, those who donated to our jeans-day cause, making this event possible, and to those who come out and volunteer their time to wrap and help with the kids. Thanks to the police offers who volunteer, shop with the children, and see the value in establishing a trusting relationship there.

I think we can all say that Shop With a Cop 2013 was a huge success! 

Check out this awesome video recap:

Shop with a Cop 2012

Throughout the year, employees of TheFireStore  pay to wear jeans on Friday and the money is collected to be used towards our annual Shop with a Cop program. The day for the Shop with a Cop event was last weekend and it was a great time!

It began with a parade into the local Walmart, with buses full of children, firetrucks, police cars and more.

This year, because of the funds raised, so many children from our local city were able to participate in the event!

An awesome part of this program is that it really helps the children in the community to look at Police Officers in a positive light, as a helping hand, and as good role models.

Each child is assigned an officer to go shopping with. They're given $100 to spend as they choose, and most use it towards Christmas gifts for their family. They spend time walking around the Walmart, meticulously picking out gifts, with their calculators out, keeping tabs as they shop. 

After the shopping is done, the bags of gifts went back to the warehouse where some volunteers from TheFireStore, from the Walmart, and from our community and churches wrapped the gifts, tagged them, and bagged them.

Overall, the 2012 Shop with a Cop event was a total success! It would not be possible without the funds from our Jeans Donations days that go directly to the spending money for the children for gifts. This is just one of the many ways that TheFireStore and it's employees give back.

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Want to learn more about Shop with a Cop? Watch a video from our CEO.

On Scene: Shop with a Cop Recap

Last Saturday morning, 100 children from our local city gathered for breakfast at an elementary school, got handed their official Shop with a Cop t-shirt, met with a handful of police officers who volunteered their time, and then loaded up to head to the local Walmart.

Of course, they rode in style, as they had a parade, wailing with sirens and all on the 10 minute drive. All eyes were on them as they pulled into the shopping center that morning!

Within a few minutes, after a group picture, all the children and volunteers were in a private back room at the Walmart, eating snacks, coloring, and waiting for their number and name to be called for their turn to shop!

Pretty soon, the children with their partner (a local police officer) were off, with calculators in hand, $100 bucks, and the chance to Christmas shop for their friends and family. A few elves, and Santa, of course, even joined in on the shopping fun!

Overall, the event went off without a hitch! 100 children were given the opportunity to shop with a police officer, on a friendly basis, cultivating a good relationship between the police and the community. The kids were able to purchase gifts for their family, be part of a fun parade & breakfast, and be part of something they'll likely not ever forget.

With the help of donations from our employees for Jeans Friday's here at TheFireStore and OfficerStore, and the amount being matched, more children were able to participate this year.

We consider this event a success and a fun way to give back to our community!

Shop With a Cop, a video explanation & how we give back.

One of the things TheFireStore & OfficerStore feel very strongly about is giving back. It's important to our President & Vice President, Jim and Ruth Witmer to do so.

This particular program, Shop with a Cop is a really, really great one that Mr. Witmer tells you about in more detail on this video. It's one where he and his wife not only help financially, but also attend and help with the day's events. None of this would be possible without the help of contributions from our own employees, too!

So take a look at this short video to learn about a great program!

How are you giving back this holiday season?