Home » A police officer’s compassionate act inspired a program to help officers offer a ‘hand-up’

A police officer’s compassionate act inspired a program to help officers offer a ‘hand-up’

We often think of police officers as the people who enforce laws, arrest suspects, and generally deal with the criminal element of society. But many of the people the police come into contact with aren’t criminals. Sometimes they’re victims. Sometimes they’re people in crisis. When officers respond to a service call, they often find people on their worst day during a difficult time.
Ideally, officers are trained to help connect community members with services that can help them, but people often have other needs that are practical, material, and immediate. Financial struggle can compound whatever else is going on, and officers often find themselves either at a loss to help or dipping into their own pockets to meet a small need they know they can do something about.

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ItwasaSanDiegopoliceofficer’sactofcompassion—buyingasnackforahungryneighborhoodchildshortlybeforebeingshotandkilledin2011—thatinspiredBrianSpracklentoask,“Whatifeveryofficerhadtheresourcestooffersimilarkindnessinmomentsofvulnerability?”FouryearslaterinKennewick,Washington,PoliceChiefKenHohenberg(