Adopt a Cop is the real story of community outreach and support for Kauai’s police. It is the story of two young men who saw a need and thought they could get the community to help. And help it did.
Adopt a Cop is the real story of community outreach and support for Kauai’s
police. It is the story of two young men who saw a need and thought they could
get the community to help.
And help it did. In just two weeks of actual
fund-raising, the Adopt a Cop program brought in $170,000 to buy 68 portable
radios for the Police Department. Each one costs about $2,500 each.
The
whole program took just a little longer and involved a lot of effort by a lot
of people. Dr. Greg Smith of Kapa’a and his brother, police patrolman Shawn
Smith, provided the ideas and leadership.
The need was real, but the
police budget for equipment was tight. Adopt a Cop was born with the premise
that if a business or individual donated a radio to a specific officer, a
potential bond between them could develop.
Several companies donated
advertising material and time. Sign and Print Machine donated the Adopt a Cop
signs seen around the island. KONG radio donated $20,000 worth of advertising
time. Ho’ike and Dickie Chang did their part to get the word out. Tiffany Sugai
donated hundreds of hours to help pull things together. And JJ’s Broiler
adopted a cop and hosted an awards and presentation ceremony Oct.
20.
Businessman and part-time Kaua’i resident Larry Bowman led the list of
donors by buying 48 radios. Many local businesses, large and small, also
adopted cops through donations that ultimately come out of their business
profits.
At the awards ceremony, where 23 officers met the donor of their
radios, police chief George Freitas thanked the Smith brothers and all others
responsible for Adopt a Cop’s success.
John Love, a Kapa’a resident,
is among individuals who made donations to Adopt a Cop.
The list of
contributors in the Adopt a Cop program included:
l Donations of services
and products: Keven and Cyn-D Hanano/Sign and Print Machine, KONG Radio, Ron
Wiley, Tiffany Sugai, Dickie Chang/Wala’au Productions, Bruce Smalling, officer
Mark Begley, Greg Smith, officer Shawn Smith and Rene Tokuda/T&R
Trophies.
l Donations of radios: Drew Lovett/Procoats Hawai’i, Larry
Bowman/Falko Partners, Ramy and Gail Miller, Charlie King/King Auto Center, The
Jasper family (Rich, Theresa, Jimmy, James, Mary and Jennifer), Ron Bonaguidi,
Harold Shimizu/Bert’s Auto Repair and Sales, Jim Lull/US Financial, Bill
Hancock/Hancock and Co., John and Bobbie Love, Bill Valente, Gurudeva/Salva
Siddhanta Church, Tradewind and Consulting, Henry Perez/Lawai Beach Resort,
Peter Tegan, Linda Lach, Ed McDowell, Ching Young Village, Jack Harter
Helicopters, Sun Village Association.
l Donations of money to buy radios:
Ron Clark, Laura Wiley, Gary Shreyer, Jill Faloon, Barbara Garner, Gary Smith,
Kaye and Mike Hurtt, Sally Moore and Ralph Rubio, Bob and Maria Prosser, John
Colton, Gary and Samantha Fisher, Sally Wolcott, Jaime and Carol Arreola,
Duke’s Canoe Club, Mike Dyer/Kilauea Management Co., Patricia Ewing/Kong Lung
Co., Elizabeth Freeman, Mike Latif/Northshore Pharmacy, Jim O’Connor/The
O’Connor Corp., Tom and Katie Pickett/Pau Hana Pizza, Seacliff School, Terry
Sullivan/Kilauea Farmers Market, Dr. Henry Winkler and Mark Carey.
