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‘Kids just being kids': Officers invite Akron youth to day of fishing, fun
AKRON, Ohio (WJW) – The Fraternal Order of Police invited 42 young people from Akron to share the day on their turf on Friday. Not patrolling the streets, but fishing, playing basketball, throwing a football and more.
The kids are a part of the outreach by the Fallen Fathers Foundation. It was originally started by Tim Anderson to help mentor only a couple of local kids.
'I was working with some kids after school and before you know it, some parents were reaching out wanting me to work with their kids and it went from there,' Anderson said.
Today, the foundation offers workplace development, group and peer mentoring, counseling, tutoring, summer programs and more.
'I have actually had some kids who have come up through the program in the past seven years and are now mentors. Some of them actually facilitate the programs,' said Anderson, who is also a behavioral health specialist.
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'I got a couple of kids here I've had since they were like five, six years old are now headed to eighth and ninth grade and they are doing great, so they are flourishing, something is working,' he said.
Organizers hope the outing will help create a closer connection between police officers and youth in the community.
'We want them to see us as officers, but as people more importantly that they can trust, that they can come to if they have a problem,' said FOP Lodge 7 President Brian Lucey.
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Among the youngsters there for the event was 14-year-old Amari Jordan.
'It's been fun. I went in the SWAT cars and I have been trying to fish,' he told FOX 8.
Fishing and enjoying the day with the kids were active duty officers, retired officers, Akron Police Department administrators and members of the FOP's executive board, as well as officers from the transit authority police who transported the kids to the lodge in two metro RTA buses.
'This is like a blessing. It's a blessing just to be able to see kids just being kids, you know? Not having to grow up too fast, allowed to have fun. A lot of them have never even picked up a fishing rod so to actually go out and actually catch something, this is nice,' said Anderson.
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