Police officers growing friendships
PRAYING FOR POLICE – Little five-year-old Robert regularly stops by the police department to pray for the police officers because he wants them to be safe. The officers love spending time with him. Officers praying with Robert are (front row from left) Lt. Markeith Wade and Ptl Andy Javier; (back row) Ptl. Josh Koop and Cpl. Shane Phillips.
by DANNY WADE | Senior Editor
dwade@hchronicle.net
Friends come in all shapes and sizes… and ages. For one local family, friendships have been made that some might think are out of the ordinary. Brittney Kellar and her family have built a wonderful friendship with Humboldt police officers.
Keller and her husband, Carington, are foster parents. Currently, between foster and biological kids, they have seven children under their roof. Alanna is the youngest at three months, Robert is five, Christopher is six, Aften is seven, Giovani is 12, Adalenna is 16 and Eleanoir is 17.
“This relationship (with the police officers) began about three and a half years ago when we started foster care,” Keller said. “Sometimes, kids are afraid of the police.”
While the Kellers were attending church around that time, two Humboldt police officers, A.J. Hodge and Shane Phillips were at church there as well. That day, a bond began, especially between Robert and the policemen. That bond has continued to grow.
Other Humboldt police officers, Joel Cooper, Markeith Wade and others have gotten to know the Keller’s kids and interact with them regularly.
Several of the officers would stop by the Keller’s house to visit with the kids. They would chat, play games and get to know each other. They talk about school and how the children are doing when it comes to their grades. From time to time, police stop by for a quick visit just to get some high-fives for fun. These visits are positive interactions that are making a difference in these youngsters’ lives.
“Now, every time Robert sees a police car, we have to pull over to see the officers,” Keller stated. “They all know him. He always prays for them.”
Keller said this healthy relationship is good for children. She said sometimes when children have dealings with the police, it is not during a good situation. Keller praises the Humboldt Police Department for going above and beyond to build relationships, not only with her kids, but all kids in the community. While Keller worked at the Boys & Girls Club, she said police officers would stop in regularly to visit and interact with the club members.
“I’ve been helping the kids for about three years,” Cpl. Phillips said. “They look up to me—kinda like a mentor. We play with them at the park, take them to stores, we’re positive role models for them.”
“We enjoy it when they stop by (the police station),” said Lt. Wade. “He always prays for us. It helps us out and we greatly appreciate it. God hears.”
Being a police officer is a tough job. Almost all the time, when the public interacts with an officer, it is due to a bad situation. It could be an auto accident, a theft, assault or sometimes the person has broken the law. But for the Kellers, when an officer comes to their house, it is a good day.
“Robert always wants to bake cookies for the cops,” Keller said. “He has a giving heart. Because of the positive interactions with the police, Robert’s career goal it to be a cop.”
Keller recalled one officer, Cooper, spent part of his day off duty to take Robert shopping just to spend time with him.
Statistics show an alarming fact of children in foster care. By age 17, over 50-percent of foster children will have an encounter with the juvenile legal system through arrest, conviction or detention. In addition, 25-percent of youth in foster care will be involved with the criminal legal system within two years of leaving foster care. If a child has moved to five or more placements, they are at a 90-percent risk of being involved with the criminal legal system.
Statistics like these are the very reason Humboldt police officers are going the extra mile to help not only the Kellers and their foster kids, but all youngsters in Humboldt. Positive interactions between cops and kids are key to changing that negative aura that some youths have toward police officers.
Humboldt police are going the extra mile to ‘protect and serve’ whether it is one child at a time, one family at a time or the entire community.
Keller has seen first hand what a difference is being made in her children due to the interactions with the officers. She said their family Bible verse is James 1:27, “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
When asked why he prays for the police officer, little Robert said, “God hears prayers and I want them to be safe.”
