Photos: “Cops for Kids” helping local families with Christmas for over 30 years

This story originally appeared in the December 20th Sapulpa Times Print Edition.

“Cops for Kids,” a partnership between the Rotary and the Sapulpa Fraternal Order of Police that has been assisting families in need to have a good Christmas has been operating in some form for at least the last 30 years.

But in 2020, there’s a whole new level of need in the local community. Thankfully, FOP and Rotary, combined with local donations, stepped up to make this year’s annual event the biggest ever.

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Between nine different stops, Sapulpa police officers were able to carry gifts to 11 families and help 25 different children have a little better Christmas.

Cagney and Niki Owens have been fostering children for the last three years. For about the last year, they have been caring for four-year-old William, two-year-old Queen, and five-month-old Rose, all siblings. Later today, they were going to be adding two more to their home—another brother and sister—which meant five children under the age of six. For them, “Cops for Kids” meant not just a better Christmas, but a chance for their foster kids to interact with the police in a positive way.

“We call them ‘heroes,'” Cagney said. “This is the first time that they’ve interacted with the police in a positive way. We want to make sure they know that the police are here to protect us.”

Lt. Amy Nichols said that’s the point of the whole program. “We want to make sure we’re out there, that the community is seeing us, and that we’re interacting with them in a positive way.”