THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, December 11, 1994 TAG: 9412110065
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Long : 129 lines
Police and sheriff's deputies fanned out over Hampton Roads on Saturday morning, taking 25 children - some just 6 years old - into custody.
None resisted as each was hustled into a police car. After all, the only charges involved were those rung up on cash registers. These children were being taken on a holiday shopping spree.
By 9 a.m., the aisles of the Greenbrier Wal-Mart were filled with uniformed police officers and sheriff's deputies from Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Virginia Beach. They were all playing Santa's helpers for the second annual Shop with A Cop program.
``This is a great time,'' Portsmouth Deputy Jerry Boone said as his young charge showed off his favorite toy purchase, a Hijacker remote-controlled pickup.
``I was praying for one of these,'' said Antonio White, 8, of Chesapeake.
Five children from each city were picked up at their homes, most in police or sheriff's cars, and taken to the store for several hours of shopping.
They started with essentials: clothes, shoes, mittens. But even the officers seemed to have more fun when it came time to head for toyland.
``Slow down! Don't run over anybody!'' Portsmouth Officer Willie Mills yelled as his young charge steered a cart around a corner - right into another young shopper's path.
``Hey, where'd y'all learn to drive?'' Deputy Brenda M. Lundy of Portsmouth asked as she found herself caught, next to the collision of fast-moving shopping carts.
``Once they got in the store and saw the toys, they got excited,'' Mills said. ``They took off.''
Each officer and deputy was keeping a list . . . and checking it thrice to make sure the total hadn't gone much over the $250 limit set for each child. But the officers' willpower seemed to wilt in the face of the children's smiles. There were a lot of math errors Saturday.
``We're on our way to get a watch with a calculator on it so I can add all this up,'' said Sgt. Steve Small of the Norfolk Sheriff's Department. ``Their smiles really come out in the toy section.''
James Mosley, 11, of Chesapeake quickly amassed a plastic super-hero army. ``I got Techno Zoids, Batman, another Batman, Ninja Turtles, X-man . . . and a radio-controlled car!''
``It's more fun than I thought it would be,'' Small said of helping with the shopping spree.
Shop with A Cop is one of three major community-support programs organized by local members of the Police Association of Virginia.
The others are a holiday food program and a scholarship program that last year distributed $25,000 to needy students.
Saturday's shopping spree should have cost about $6,250, but the final register receipt was higher, thanks to some generous fudging on the $250 limit. Children are selected for the program by city social services agencies and by school officials.
``The officers get a big kick out of it,'' said Richard A. Justice, deputy chief of the Chesapeake police and incoming president of the association. ``And it helps build some rapport with kids who often have a negative impression of people in uniform.''
Many children came with shopping lists. A few simply wandered the aisles and grabbed what caught their eyes. But many of the youths had ulterior - and altruistic - motives as they carefully counted down their dollars. They were shopping for brothers, sisters and friends as well as themselves.
Linda Guthrie, 9, of Portsmouth looked perplexed as she stood amid shelves of dolls towering over her.
``She's trying to think what she wants to get her sister,'' said Deputy Robert McDaniel of Portsmouth.
``I don't know what she wants,'' Linda mumbled as she bit one finger and stared.
Linda was one of those who had written a list. But she forgot to bring it.
``She left it out in the car,'' McDaniel said. ``Typical female shopper.''
Linda's sister, Dianne, was shopping with Portsmouth deputies Paul Ewing and and Deborah Ferrell.
Where Linda was tentative, Dianne was certain.
``She knows what she wants,'' Ewing said. ``She's been no trouble to shop for.''
Except, of course, when it came to certain personal items.
``She didn't want me to see her `essentials,' '' Ewing said. ``That's why we teamed up.'' Ferrell handled that part of the shopping.
``She's a better shopper than I am,'' Ferrell said. ``I need to take her with me when I do my Christmas shopping. She goes in there and finds what she wants, snap, snap, snap.''
Dannisha Blanchard, 8, filled her cart with clothes and gifts for several people.
``She's gotten an awful lot for her family,'' said Officer Mike Lawton of Chesapeake.
Among the items, a prized pair of Power Rangers sneakers for her brother.
``She's a very good shopper,'' Lawton said.
``When we were almost done, she said, `Now I need some wrapping paper,' so we went and got that, too.''
Dannisha was interviewed by a WAVY-TV crew covering the event, but she said she doubted she would see herself on the 11 p.m. news. ``I'll be asleep by then,'' she said.
While most of the children bought some clothing, Michael Chance Dillon, 6, of Chesapeake, escorted by Officer Ralph Priest of Chesapeake, had filled his cart with enough toys to weigh down Santa's sled - a football, race cars, video games and more.
Topping it all, a huge firetruck that was half his size.
Why didn't he get any clothing? `` 'Cause I didn't want to,'' Chance said with a grin as he rested his face in his arms on the shopping cart.
The boy's father, Vernon Priest, was grateful for the Christmas help and said his son would learn something from the experience.
``I want to make this a lesson for him. I'm going to teach him how to give to other people,'' Priest said. ``We're going to look for some needy families and give some of the toys to them.''
Christmas ``isn't what it used to be,'' Priest said. ``In today's society it's always, `What can I get?' People need to learn to give.''
So a lot of the toys Chance picked will be under someone else's tree come Christmas Day.
Except maybe for that shiny red firetruck with the silver ladders, his dad said with a smile. ``I suspect that's his.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
GARY C. KNAPP
Kenneth Perkins, 6, left, and Michael Norfleet take notice as a
Suffolk sheriff's deputy sets a watch Kenneth picked out during
Saturday's shopping spree. The boys joined 23 other local children
in choosing toys and gifts at the Greenbrier Wal-Mart.
Photo
GARY C. KNAPP
Eight-year-old Aaron Perkins, left, watches as his new toys and
clothes are loaded into a car. Suffolk deputies Jimmy Smith and
Robert Vaughan helped Perkins with his shopping Saturday.
by CNB