Shop With a Hero brings holiday joy to area families

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Every year in mid-December the Fraternal Order of Police does a Shop With a Hero event with the local children and the FOP is accepting donations to help with the event. The more donations received, the more children may be invited to shop.

“We normally take between 100 and 150 kids,” said FOP treasurer and Poplar Bluff Police Sgt. Shonna Grobe. “They are all kindergarten through sixth grade from Butler County which includes the Poplar Bluff School District, Neelyville school district, and Twin Rivers.”

The families have to verify they are in need. They go through the Poplar Bluff Christmas Promise application process to be chosen.

“We have fundraisers throughout the year, we also get donations from many civic organizations,” Grobe said. “Rotary Club always comes through, veterans group, the Eagles, American Legion, many churches and your average everyday citizens makes donations throughout the month of November and December to help with our cause.”

This year, the Daily American Republic will partner with Shop With a Hero.

DAR General Manager and advertising director Christy Pierce said, “We will be collecting money for the Shop with the Hero program. Your tax deductible donation can be made at the Daily American Republic and Insta Print, 208 Poplar St. Insta Print has a drive through window for your convenience and 100% of the proceeds collected will be given to the Shop with a Hero program.”

Pierce said, “What better organization to donate to than heroes helping our local children have a very merry Christmas.”

Donations also may be made by mailing them or dropping them off at the police department, 911 Shelby Road, as well as at the newspaper. Receipts will be provided for the tax deductible donations given at the newspaper office.

Checks should be made payable to the Poplar Bluff Fraternal Order of Police,

“It’s not necessarily police officers who assist,” Grobe said. “Anybody really who wears a uniform and children can look up to are invited.”

Participating each year are members of the Poplar Bluff Police Department, Butler County Sheriff’s Department, Missouri State Highway Patrol, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center police, Poplar Bluff Fire Department, Butler County EMS, Medic One, Air Evac Lifeteam, Missouri Department of Conservation and Missouri Army National Guard.

“Every year that we do it, it’s a very heartwarming day for everybody, all the adults that are involved,” Grobe said. “You always have a couple of kids who pull at your heartstrings. A couple of situations where they want to help out at home. It makes it all worthwhile. There’s a lot of time and effort that goes into it. A lot of money.”

While the program has been going strong for decades, Grobe has been involved in it since 2009.

Participating is something the officers look forward to each year, Grobe said.

“I say for me, it’s going to a call and (seeing) the children on what could possibly be the worst day and then stepping away from that and being able to see a child smile in that eagerness of Christmas,” Grobe said.

“I’ve kind of taken it as a personal goal to make it happen every year,” she said. “It’s just an extra thing I do on my own. I’ve taken it underneath my wing but I have a very good working relationship with Becky Winters.”

Winters is the program director for AmeriCorps Poplar Bluff’s Promise. Grobe added, Winters “makes my job much easier. We work hand in hand and start communicating quite frequently the first week in December, and we try to get a list compiled.”

The children chosen for this year’s event, each will be given money to spend as they shop with a local first responder. A shopping date has not been set at this time.