Officers with the Harrisonburg Police Department will be walking a different beat on Tuesday.
The annual Shop With A Cop event will return to Valley Mall and Target on Tuesday as HPD teams up with the Boys & Girls Club of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, Healthy Families of the Blue Ridge and Rockingham County Social Services to help families in need this holiday season.
Each elf hat-adorned officer will be paired with a family that will receive a free meal at Country Cookin before going on a shopping spree at mall retailers and Target.
Officers will be shopping with around 25 kids from the Harrisonburg area. The effort, which has taken place since 2016, not only supports local families but allows officers to create stronger bonds with those in the community they serve.
“Any chance we get to work closer with our residents during positive, uplifting moments, we look forward to those opportunities,” HPD Chief Eric English said. “We’re very thankful for our partners in the community that make this event a reality, and we are humbled to be able to play a role in making Christmas that much more special for our neighbors in Harrisonburg.”
Officers will continue sharing their Christmas spirit throughout the week, as they make donations to families in need across the city thanks to a community Secret Santa that sponsors the effort.
And on Thursday, HPD SWAT team members, working with School Resource Officers, will travel with Santa as he visits special students and their families at their homes and drops off Christmas presents.
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