Published: November 17, 2009 11:27 am      

Shop with Cop, Trooper join forces

Shop with a Cop and Shop with a Trooper will join forces this year in an effort to give up to 200 Laurel County kids the shopping spree of their little lives.

“This is going to be one of the biggest years we’ve had,” organizer Don Wattenbarger said.

The event is scheduled to be in the early part of December at Walmart, Wattenbarger said.

Kids will once again receive a $100 shopping spree, of which $75 will be used to purchase clothes.

“There are a lot of those kids who do not want toys, they want clothes,” Wattenbarger said. “Or they want to buy their mother or daddy a gift. It’s beautiful.”

Children are chosen by their school’s family resource youth service center directors or by law enforcement officers who have witnessed a great need in their day-to-day patrols.

Officers from the London City Police, Kentucky State Police and Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement are expected to be in attendance on the big day, along with firefighters from the Laurel County and London fire departments. This year, workers from the Federal Corrections Institute in Manchester will also help shop.

Donations have been coming in for the event, with area banks, lawyers, Saint Joseph-London, AMVETS, American Legion and about 150 area businesses contributing.

“We have a lot of help from the community,” organizer Virginia Wattenbarger said. “Every year, we’ll have somebody step up to the plate when we’re running short.”

This is the 14th year of the event, which was started by the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 28.

A firm date for Shop with a Cop/Shop with a Trooper will be set in the coming days.

To make a donation, call Don Wattenbarger at 878-8047 or 682-0902. Donations are tax deductible.

Staff writer Tara Kaprowy can be reached by e-mail at tkaprowy@sentinel-echo.com.