- A random selection process creates broad community impact — The Omaha Police Department does not target a specific group of students. Instead, it randomly selects an entire school each year, ensuring the benefit reaches a wide range of families who could use extra help preparing for the school year.
- $200 goes a long way for students in need — Each of the 40 selected students received $200 to spend at Target, allowing them to choose the specific clothes and supplies they needed most. For students like Joshua, that meant new shirts, pants, socks and other essentials they may not have otherwise had heading into the first day.
- The event is as much about trust as it is about shopping — Officers say the program is designed to build positive relationships between law enforcement and communities that may not always have favorable interactions with police. For Officer Ryan Lee and his colleagues, the day serves as a reminder of why they do the job — and a visible demonstration to the public that trust between officers and the community still exists.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
NORTH OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Forty students from Gifford Park Elementary in North Omaha got a back-to-school boost from the Omaha Police Department — each receiving $200 to spend at Target on clothes and school supplies.
Every year, the department randomly selects a school and students who could use extra help preparing for the new school year. Each student is accompanied by an officer and a police recruit during the shopping trip.
Sixth grader, Joshua, who has attended the event multiple times, said this year he picked out new shirts, pants, socks and other back-to-school essentials.
"I love the program because it helps kids to get stuff that they really need for back to school including supplies, and like things and clothes," Joshua said.
Joshua said the officers are always kind and supportive.
"All the times that I had shopped with the cops it was very fun and all the things you could get for back to school," the Joshua said.
For officers, the event is about more than shopping. The Omaha Police Department says the program aims to build stronger community relationships with children and communities that might not always have positive interactions with law enforcement.
"We see the worst of the worst then days like this it's not always bad being a cop and getting our lieutenants and our staff out there and for the public to see that trust is still there," an officer said.
Officer Ryan Lee, who has been with the department for 3 years, said the annual event never gets old.
"It's a rewarding feeling to me and it kind of solidifies everything that I do and makes me appreciate it," Lee said.
