7th Annual Shop With a Hero
Donation protected
The Huron Township Police Department would like to once again work with deserving children this holiday season with our 7th annual "Shop with a Hero" event.
Last year, we were able to provide a Christmas for 10 Huron Township children and multiple other well-deserving families. It was and is truly the best day of the year. Huron Township First Responders, members of the community, Huron School District staff and their families volunteered their time to make this happen. Our goal is to make this the best Christmas for children that other wise may not have one.
After seeing our event the last five years, many residents asked us how they could donate to this wonderful cause. We decided to ask our community partners once again for help in this project. Anything will help. We can assure you that every dollar will go towards Huron Township Children and receipts will be maintained.
In 2016, the Huron Township Fire Department joined in this great event, essentially making this a night to "shop with a hero." We are proud that they will be joining this effort once again.
The goal is to make this happen, not just from the Police and Fire Departments, but from this great community! If we are lucky enough to surpass our goal, the Huron Township Police Department will gladly use extra money help other families in other ways in our community. In that instance as well, all expenditures will be publicly revealed.
Based on the generosity of our residents, we were able to help many more people last year during the holiday season than ever before. Below is a synopsis of some of last years event, which was our biggest ever:
As each child arrived at the Police Station, every child also got a brand-new winter coat courtesy of the Huron Township Good Fellows Program. Each child was also provided with a brand-new pair of shoes. The shoes were given to each child by Santa Claus who spent the entire evening with the children.
We started the evening off by pairing each child with a Huron Township Police Officer, Huron Township Firefighter and a generous volunteer or two. Each child got a private ride in a Huron Township Police Car or Huron Township Fire Truck to have a night out shopping. Prior to leaving, each kid got the chance to get into the Police Car or Fire Truck and turn on the lights and ring the sirens; probably their favorite part of the evening. We traveled to the store together as a team with our emergency lights activated at the request of the kids.
We traveled to the Meijer store in Flat Rock where we each kid got to go on a shopping spree, not only for themselves, but their family as well. Each parent also went on a shopping spree of their own to help with Santa's arrival on Christmas morning. Special thanks to the entire staff at the Meijer in Flat Rock for going out of their way to make this a special night for these children. At the end of the evening, the families were each given a food basket compliments of Donna Mendrysa and the Visteon Group. In addition, each family also received a $100 Meijer gift card to assist with making Christmas even more special.
** The highlight of the evening **
Each year we try to highlight a special highlight that shows the true meaning of Christmas through the eyes of a child. When we arrived at the store, each child was told that they had money to spend to buy themselves anything in the store that they wanted. One child immediately went straight to board games instead of toys. When asked why, they told us it was so that they could find a way to have their whole family together around the table; something they said doesn’t happen nearly enough.
Special Thanks goes out to the following people who volunteered their time during the event and made this great event possible: Director Everette Robbins; Deputy Police Chief Mark Perkins; Lt. Leo Girard; Lt. Bryan Tyitye; Corporal Sterling Price; Officer Ahmed Kassem; Officer Adam Sheehan; Officer Thomas Smith; Officer Keith Nappo; Officer Rick Proctor; Dispatch Supervisor Jill Evans; Dispatcher Alexis Powell; Records Clerk Angelica Gonzales; Fire Chief James Hinojosa; Fire Deputy Chief James Katona; Firefighter Eric Poet; Firefighter Debbie Bowman; Firefighter Robert Makowski; Firefighter Dave Weaver; Firefighter; Joe Abel; Firefighter Ian Bowman; Firefighter Julius Rea; Firefighter Cauy Webb; Firefighter Vincent Webb; Firefighter Robert DeLeon; Firefighter TJ Hughey; Donna Mendrysa; Lauren Stach; Courtney Stach; Carrie Robbins; Linda Robbins; Louie Robbins; Delaney Robbins; Lyndsey Robbins; Amy Nappo; Kaitlynn Hinojosa; Teresa Squires; Holly Mitchell; Emily McCall; Deb Kirk, Huron Schools Bus Driver; Brown Elementary Principal Cory Pengelly; Scott Wellman, Santa; The Adkins Family; Courtney Rhodes; Jennifer Bowler
More Special Thanks goes out to the following people for their generous donations that made this night possible for these children: Huron Township Supervisor David Glaab; The Huron Township Good Fellows; R.P. Lilly; Helena Lilly; The Yoscovits Family; XG Security Taylor, MI; Kathy Beh; Faith Russow; Justin Lyons; Mike and Amie Baker; Douglas Adkins; John Knight; The Joquico Family; The Chapp Family; Dave Ryska; Cherie and Gordon Stump; Six anonymous donors;
In addition to the Shop with a Hero event on December 20th, the Huron Township Department of Public Safety was able to do the following other acts of kindness this season based on the generous contributions from this wonderful community.
A 6th Grade Renton Jr. High student was taken on a shopping. He was given a video gaming system. He told us was the only thing he really wanted for Christmas. He said it was the first video system he has ever had for himself.
Two Huron High School students, 10th and 12th Grade, were taken on a shopping spree for new clothing and shoes. The boys commented on how this interaction changed allowed them to see the human side of Law Enforcement Officers.
The Huron Township Department of Public Safety Dispatch staff adopted a Huron Township Military service member who Master Sergeant in the United States Army. She is battling cancer at Walter Reid Military Hospital in Maryland. Dispatch Staff sent a care package to our Hero consisting of things such as heated blanket, pajamas, slippers, crafts, various snacks, and a book that at least one person that knows her describes her well!
The Huron Township Citizen Police Academy alumni group adopted a local single mother with 5-month-old twins. She was provided with a Christmas Dinner as well as food to get her through the holiday season. She was also provided clothes and necessities for her and her babies.
A family with three children was adopted by Director Robbins and his family. They will receive all the fixings for a Christmas Dinner, along with a visit from Santa with gifts on Christmas Morning.
Huron Township Public Safety employees have been out delivering new bikes and toys to kids throughout the area and will continue to do so throughout the rest of the holiday season.
As the Director, I couldn’t be prouder of how Huron Township came together for these children and families. As for the Shop with a Hero Event, it was a special sight to see more than 50 volunteers focusing on six special children and making them Kings and Queens for a day. We saw a community come together to not only provide funding, but to be there on the parade route to wave to the kids and show them that an entire community cares about them and their families. They may not realize how special this night was right now, but they will someday. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving our organization the opportunity to be a small part of this great community team in the place we all call home.
I hope you all enjoy the video recap of the evening prepared by my very talented daughter, Lyndsey Robbins.
On Christmas Eve, Huron Township Police delivered scooters, toys, and bikes to random kids at businesses within Huron Township as making a special home visit from Santa for a few!
Thanks for reading. Any questions or concerns can be directed to Director Everette Robbins at [email redacted].
Help spread the word!
Last year, we were able to provide a Christmas for 10 Huron Township children and multiple other well-deserving families. It was and is truly the best day of the year. Huron Township First Responders, members of the community, Huron School District staff and their families volunteered their time to make this happen. Our goal is to make this the best Christmas for children that other wise may not have one.
After seeing our event the last five years, many residents asked us how they could donate to this wonderful cause. We decided to ask our community partners once again for help in this project. Anything will help. We can assure you that every dollar will go towards Huron Township Children and receipts will be maintained.
In 2016, the Huron Township Fire Department joined in this great event, essentially making this a night to "shop with a hero." We are proud that they will be joining this effort once again.
The goal is to make this happen, not just from the Police and Fire Departments, but from this great community! If we are lucky enough to surpass our goal, the Huron Township Police Department will gladly use extra money help other families in other ways in our community. In that instance as well, all expenditures will be publicly revealed.
Based on the generosity of our residents, we were able to help many more people last year during the holiday season than ever before. Below is a synopsis of some of last years event, which was our biggest ever:
As each child arrived at the Police Station, every child also got a brand-new winter coat courtesy of the Huron Township Good Fellows Program. Each child was also provided with a brand-new pair of shoes. The shoes were given to each child by Santa Claus who spent the entire evening with the children.
We started the evening off by pairing each child with a Huron Township Police Officer, Huron Township Firefighter and a generous volunteer or two. Each child got a private ride in a Huron Township Police Car or Huron Township Fire Truck to have a night out shopping. Prior to leaving, each kid got the chance to get into the Police Car or Fire Truck and turn on the lights and ring the sirens; probably their favorite part of the evening. We traveled to the store together as a team with our emergency lights activated at the request of the kids.
We traveled to the Meijer store in Flat Rock where we each kid got to go on a shopping spree, not only for themselves, but their family as well. Each parent also went on a shopping spree of their own to help with Santa's arrival on Christmas morning. Special thanks to the entire staff at the Meijer in Flat Rock for going out of their way to make this a special night for these children. At the end of the evening, the families were each given a food basket compliments of Donna Mendrysa and the Visteon Group. In addition, each family also received a $100 Meijer gift card to assist with making Christmas even more special.
** The highlight of the evening **
Each year we try to highlight a special highlight that shows the true meaning of Christmas through the eyes of a child. When we arrived at the store, each child was told that they had money to spend to buy themselves anything in the store that they wanted. One child immediately went straight to board games instead of toys. When asked why, they told us it was so that they could find a way to have their whole family together around the table; something they said doesn’t happen nearly enough.
Special Thanks goes out to the following people who volunteered their time during the event and made this great event possible: Director Everette Robbins; Deputy Police Chief Mark Perkins; Lt. Leo Girard; Lt. Bryan Tyitye; Corporal Sterling Price; Officer Ahmed Kassem; Officer Adam Sheehan; Officer Thomas Smith; Officer Keith Nappo; Officer Rick Proctor; Dispatch Supervisor Jill Evans; Dispatcher Alexis Powell; Records Clerk Angelica Gonzales; Fire Chief James Hinojosa; Fire Deputy Chief James Katona; Firefighter Eric Poet; Firefighter Debbie Bowman; Firefighter Robert Makowski; Firefighter Dave Weaver; Firefighter; Joe Abel; Firefighter Ian Bowman; Firefighter Julius Rea; Firefighter Cauy Webb; Firefighter Vincent Webb; Firefighter Robert DeLeon; Firefighter TJ Hughey; Donna Mendrysa; Lauren Stach; Courtney Stach; Carrie Robbins; Linda Robbins; Louie Robbins; Delaney Robbins; Lyndsey Robbins; Amy Nappo; Kaitlynn Hinojosa; Teresa Squires; Holly Mitchell; Emily McCall; Deb Kirk, Huron Schools Bus Driver; Brown Elementary Principal Cory Pengelly; Scott Wellman, Santa; The Adkins Family; Courtney Rhodes; Jennifer Bowler
More Special Thanks goes out to the following people for their generous donations that made this night possible for these children: Huron Township Supervisor David Glaab; The Huron Township Good Fellows; R.P. Lilly; Helena Lilly; The Yoscovits Family; XG Security Taylor, MI; Kathy Beh; Faith Russow; Justin Lyons; Mike and Amie Baker; Douglas Adkins; John Knight; The Joquico Family; The Chapp Family; Dave Ryska; Cherie and Gordon Stump; Six anonymous donors;
In addition to the Shop with a Hero event on December 20th, the Huron Township Department of Public Safety was able to do the following other acts of kindness this season based on the generous contributions from this wonderful community.
A 6th Grade Renton Jr. High student was taken on a shopping. He was given a video gaming system. He told us was the only thing he really wanted for Christmas. He said it was the first video system he has ever had for himself.
Two Huron High School students, 10th and 12th Grade, were taken on a shopping spree for new clothing and shoes. The boys commented on how this interaction changed allowed them to see the human side of Law Enforcement Officers.
The Huron Township Department of Public Safety Dispatch staff adopted a Huron Township Military service member who Master Sergeant in the United States Army. She is battling cancer at Walter Reid Military Hospital in Maryland. Dispatch Staff sent a care package to our Hero consisting of things such as heated blanket, pajamas, slippers, crafts, various snacks, and a book that at least one person that knows her describes her well!
The Huron Township Citizen Police Academy alumni group adopted a local single mother with 5-month-old twins. She was provided with a Christmas Dinner as well as food to get her through the holiday season. She was also provided clothes and necessities for her and her babies.
A family with three children was adopted by Director Robbins and his family. They will receive all the fixings for a Christmas Dinner, along with a visit from Santa with gifts on Christmas Morning.
Huron Township Public Safety employees have been out delivering new bikes and toys to kids throughout the area and will continue to do so throughout the rest of the holiday season.
As the Director, I couldn’t be prouder of how Huron Township came together for these children and families. As for the Shop with a Hero Event, it was a special sight to see more than 50 volunteers focusing on six special children and making them Kings and Queens for a day. We saw a community come together to not only provide funding, but to be there on the parade route to wave to the kids and show them that an entire community cares about them and their families. They may not realize how special this night was right now, but they will someday. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving our organization the opportunity to be a small part of this great community team in the place we all call home.
I hope you all enjoy the video recap of the evening prepared by my very talented daughter, Lyndsey Robbins.
On Christmas Eve, Huron Township Police delivered scooters, toys, and bikes to random kids at businesses within Huron Township as making a special home visit from Santa for a few!
Thanks for reading. Any questions or concerns can be directed to Director Everette Robbins at [email redacted].
Help spread the word!
Organizer
Everette Robbins
Organizer
Huron Township, MI
