WAKE FOREST Eniyah Kearney, 11, carefully looked through tins of popcorn with Wake Forest police officer Scott Graham to find the perfect gift for her grandmother.
"I got presents for my uncle, grandma and sister," Eniyah said. "And I got DS game, coat and Justin Bieber shirt for myself."
Eniyah, a Jones Dairy Elementary School student, was one of the 31 children who participated last week in the 11th annual Wake Forest Police Department Shop with a Cop event in which the town's police officers volunteer time to take a child whose family would not be able to afford Christmas presents on a shopping trip.
Throughout the evening Wednesday, officers helped children test ride bicycles, find the perfect Barbie and hunt for video games on their wish list. The children, who were referred by teachers from Jones Dairy, Heritage and Wake Forest elementary schools, were paired with an officer for the evening and given $175 to spend on a winter coat and presents at Walmart.
Detective Kim Warren, organizer of the event, said the officers often have to encourage the children to buy things for themselves because many of them want to spend their money on other people. Several years ago, one of the kids was insistent that he wanted to use his money to buy diapers for his baby brother. Another child wanted to buy a blanket because he got cold at night and didn't have anything to keep him warm.
Warren picked up all of the children from school Wednesday in a van donated by Chris Leith Kia and brought them to the Wake Forest Community House. Santa made an arrival and escorted the group to Walmart. After the shopping trip, the group enjoyed a pizza party donated by CiCi's Pizza in Wake Forest. At the end of the evening, the Optimist Club of Wake Forest, whose members also volunteered during the event, gave each child a stocking filled with a hat, gloves and toys.
The event began after Warren and officer Cindy Perry were assigned to a community policing unit on Christmas Day and saw some children with new toys, but other children who did not receive any gifts. They decided to do something to help these families and organized their first Wake Forest Shop with a Cop event in December 1999.
Warren personally visits each family referred to the program to meet with the parents and make sure the family has a financial need.
"These kids won't have a Christmas unless we step in," Warren said.
When Capt. Darren Abbacchi began working as an officer for the Wake Forest department 19 years ago, his mindset was that his job was primarily about "getting the bad guys." But after volunteering with the first Shop with a Cop 11 years ago, he realized that connecting with the community is the biggest part of being in law enforcement.
"Every single kid that I have been paired with has made an impression on me. I have taken a little bit from each one of them," said Abbacchi, who has volunteered at every Shop with a Cop event.
The department receives a grant for the event from the Wal-Mart Foundation and also uses donations raised throughout the year to fund the shopping trip.
"We appreciate that they put on this great event to pull the community together," said Marty Brown, manager of the Wake Forest Walmart. "This shows the children that cops are their friends."
The children weren't the only ones thankful to be a part of Shop with a Cop. When David Metcalf of Wake Forest picked up his two children from their shopping trip, he was speechless when he saw their grinning faces and bags of presents.
Metcalf, who has also a 2-year old, is out of work and said times have been hard for the family. He wasn't sure how he was going to be able to afford Christmas.
"This means everything to us," he said.
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