BELLEVUE, Neb. (KMTV) — The Bellevue police and fire departments teamed up to provide toys to children in need ahead of the holiday season.
Each winter, the two organizations host "Shop with a Cop," an event where the departments take 100 children on an all-expense paid shopping spree to a local Walmart.
"I've been doing this for a long time and this is one of my favorite days of the year," said Sgt. Larry Lampman of the Bellevue Police Department. "We get to take 140 kids shopping and to see that they wouldn't have this without us is pretty special."
The police officers and fire fighters give kids $100 to spend in the store. $50 dollars is spent on necessities such as clothing and shoes and while the other $50 can be spent on toys and electronics.
"Kids wouldn't have the opportunity to get extra toys, extra shoes and clothes if it wasn't for programs like this," said Jason Boyer, a parent at the event. Boyer has five foster children and three children of his own and said the holidays can be tough on his family.
"We would've made it work but it gives the kids the choice to pick things that they like," Boyer said. "They got shoes, they got pants, they got a lot of nicer clothes."
The Bellevue Police Department raised the money through a chili cook-off and other donations. The officers said the event is always a special day for the department and they always enjoy seeing the looks on the kid's faces when they're picking their toys.
"It's a fun way to spend money I'll tell you that," said Lampman.
