CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Children and police officers alike zoomed down the aisles of Walmart on Friday afternoon during the Shop with a Cop event, stocking shopping carts full with toys, food and Christmas decorations.
The event was hosted by the Wyoming Highway Patrol, Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, Wyoming State Parks, Cheyenne Police Department and Pine Bluffs Police Department.
During Shop with a Cop, students selected by Laramie County Elementary School staff were given $100 to shop for themselves with an officer, deputy, or trooper.
A section of Walmart on 580 Livingston Ave. was blocked off to shoppers and transformed into a holiday circus where the children could take pictures with Santa, wrap presents and receive bags of food to bring home to their families.
The Shop with a Cop program was started by the Wyoming Highway Patrol Association in 2015.
The WHP collected donations to fund the event, and any leftover money will go to the local school districts to help students pay for their school lunches.
Shop with a Cop and similar charitable giving events are happening in almost every community in the state throughout the holiday season.
Wyoming’s First Lady’s Hunger Initiative is also partnering with Shop with a Cop throughout the state to ensure each participating child and their family will not go hungry through the holiday season.
