Stop, Drop, Shop with a Cop

By Shannon in News on Dec 10, 2006 7:00PM

We've all heard the expression "like a kid in a candy store," but how does "like a kid in a Wal-Mart" sound? Eh, even as a kid, we would have taken it. It sounded great for 25 underprivileged children from North Chicago, who received the opportunity to shop at Wal-Mart for the holidays with their local friendly police officers in tow.

The police department's "Shop with a Cop" event trumpeted into its second year on Thursday night. Last year, 10 hand-picked, needy children got $100 gift vouchers at their local Wal-Mart. This year, due to more donations from community organizations and a generous fund from the police themselves, 15 more kids came on board. Cops led kids through the aisles as they picked up gifts for themselves and family members. The spree was followed up by a pizza party, which would be the only reason we'd need to go. Teaming up with the police was the North Chicago Unit School District; children were chosen according to certain criteria, such as economic need and school performance.

Almost as overwhelmed by the whole event were the children's parents. One mother cried when she found out her terminally ill child had been chosen for the night. Another commented that it couldn't have come at a better time. We think Christmas Eve would have made a smashing idea, but then the kids probably would be overrun by negligent last-minute shoppers trying to snap up sweatpants and rifles. It looks like this shopping spree thing is catching on; some firefighters and paramedics also teamed up with Wal-Mart on the West Side, taking on a grand total of 200 kids. That's a lot of satisfied customers.

Image courtesy of Triborough.