Police, kids go on the buying beat

For two years, the young girl from Audubon Elementary School had wanted to build her own teddy bear at a shop in NorthTown Mall, but her family couldn’t afford it.

The Teddy Bear Junction was her first stop during Shop with a Cop on Saturday. She was accompanied by Spokane police Officer Teresa Fuller.

“Her eyes just lit up,” Fuller said. “She named the teddy bear Angel.”

The young girl was among six children – three each from Holmes and Audubon elementary schools – who were selected by their school counselors to participate in the Shop with a Cop program. This was the first time Spokane police officers decided to participate in the event, which is a tradition for many police agencies throughout the state.

The six children were 10 to 12 years old, Fuller said.

For each of the youngsters, the day started with a police officer picking up the children and a parent at their homes. The next stop was breakfast at Jack’s Diner before the group headed out to shop.

Each child was given a $100 gift card from the Spokane Police Guild and a $50 gift card from the NorthTown Mall. Individual merchants throughout the mall also gave the children gift certificates and significant discounts. Added up, each child received about $800 worth of gifts.

The children were then escorted by officers to buy their family members Christmas presents and a few items for themselves.

Part of the package was a free eye exam and glasses, Fuller said. But for young D.J. Martin, it wasn’t her vision that was blurred, it was her mom’s, Fuller said. Shawna Martin is a single mother of five, and her children teased her about squinting all the time.

An officer asked Lenscrafters if they could transfer the eye exam to the mother, and the merchant agreed.

While Shawna Martin was getting her eye exam, D.J. found a Christmas present for her mother.

Fuller said the event was a positive experience for the kids and police officers.

“We are definitely going to do it again next year,” Fuller said.