The Whitewater Police Department held their second successful Shop with a Cop event on December 10th.

One student from each elementary school within the Whitewater Unified School District was selected to join local law enforcement to shop for the holidays; Gio from Washington, Gavin from Lakeview and Jacob from Lincoln.

Detective Jake Hintz, Officer Shane Brandl, Officer Liz Tlougan, Support Services Manager Kathy Boyd, Records Technician Angela Sahr and Dispatcher Angieleek Lipski and Chief Aaron Raap met with the students and their families at Wal-Mart in Whitewater. Staff split into teams and helped the students find gifts for their families and themselves.

Each student was presented with a $100 gift card from the Whitewater Crime Prevention Fund along with an additional $25 from Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart also gave each family a $50 gift certificate to use for groceries.

“We are grateful for the wonderful partnership we have with the Whitewater Unified School District. They did an excellent job of selecting deserving and respectful students for this event,” said Chief Aaron Raap. “We also value and deeply appreciate our ongoing partnership with our local Walmart.”

The students were driven in squad cars back to the police department where staff helped them wrap their gifts while enjoying cookies and hot chocolate.

“It is incredibly rewarding to work with a professional, caring and dedicated law enforcement team every day. But when we have or can create an opportunity to interact with our community, especially the youth of Whitewater, it really means so much more,” said Raap. “We hope that this event will make the holidays a little more special for these young students and their families.”