LOGAN — There was a season full of smiles Saturday morning, as law enforcement agencies from throughout Cache Valley joined forces for their annual Shop with a Cop event. The yearly tradition gave 50 children the chance to choose Christmas gifts for themselves and their families, with the help of officers, deputies, and volunteers.
Law enforcement from throughout Cache Valley enjoying breakfast with kids at the Cache County Sheriff’s Office, Dec. 7, 2024.
North Park Police Chief Kent Goodrich was again the lead organizer of this year’s event and worked with the Family Place to select the children. He said the program not only helps families in need, but also builds friendships between the kids and law enforcement.
“Some of these kid’s futures are bleak at times,” explained Goodrich, “with what they are going through, like medical problems or financial problems. It is so beyond what our normal day to day worries and struggles are, it just pales in comparison.”
Officers and kids from throughout the valley being greeted by Santa Claus and Buddy The Elf during law enforcement’s Shop with a Cop event at the North Logan Walmart, Dec. 7, 2024.
The kids who were chosen this year were invited to the Cache County Sheriff’s Office, where they were first partnered with a law enforcement member. They then had a chance to eat breakfast together, complete with scrambled eggs, waffles, bacon and hash browns, served by the Sheriff’s Office Explorer Post.
After breakfast, the kids were chauffeured in a full police procession, with lights and sirens, to the North Logan Walmart, where they were greeted by Santa Claus and Buddy The Elf, riding in on a North Logan firetruck.
A police officer helping a brother and sister choose t-shirts during Shop with a Cop, Dec. 7, 2024.
Each law enforcement member was given a list of some of their child’s needs and wants along with $250 gift card. Goodrich said they had so many businesses and individuals come forward this year wanting to help.
“Each Walmart, the North Logan and the South Logan, put together a financial donation that was quite large actually. In addition to all of the companies here in town, we also had Nucor in Box Elder County that found out about the Shop with a Cop event and wanted to help. They contributed a sizable amount as well. It has been truly fantastic and so generous.”
Deputy Butler from the Cache County Sheriff’s Office helps a girl choose matching pajamas for her family, Dec. 7, 2024.
While some children headed to the toy department, many were seen looking for warm clothes and other necessities for their families. Others asked to buy gifts for their parents.
Shop with a Cop has been a yearly tradition in Cache Valley that goes back decades. It is one of the few events where all the various law enforcement agencies come together.
Goodrich said this year they not only had more businesses wanting to help but they also had more law enforcement than they have had in years past. It is what the Christmas season is all about.
Volunteers from local businesses and youth councils wrap gifts that children picked out while shopping with law enforcement, Dec. 7, 2024.
“I think you truly see what it means to serve,” stated Goodrich. “The essence of service is that there is a love that is generated there. A love for your community, a love for the people and a love for the experience. That love of being able to look beyond your immediate needs and situation, and look to somebody else who is really struggling.”
This year, Goodrich also reached out to the city councils of North Logan and Hyde Park, along with others, to ask if they would like to help. The volunteers set up gift wrapping stations in the front of the store, to wrap each child’s presents when they were done shopping.
With the extra donations the police department received this year, officers were able to put together a Christmas stocking for each child’s family. It contained gift cards to local grocery stores and restaurants.