Page 47 - December 2021

Special Report:
a holiday feast of giving and getting thanks
Inspired by resident, 9th District delivers food
In the spirit of this giving season, one Chicago resident reached out to 9th District officers to help her give back to the communi- ty and provide food for their Thanksgiving Day celebrations. 9th District officers like Jason Sollis were more than willing to lend a helping hand.
After receiving leftover food from a local food bank, Lola decided she could make use of it by delivering it to senior citizens’ homes around the city on Nov. 23. Sollis reflected on the wonderful eve- ning, recounting how extremely grateful everyone was. And the evening soon became an experience he would always remember.
“It was phenomenal,” he declared. “It made me feel wonderful to see everybody so happy and so appreciative.”
Sollis and the other officers delivered food like chicken, rice and spaghetti to surrounding areas, and each person was overjoyed with gratitude.
“It was very touching to see how grateful they were to be receiv- ing these food baskets to bring home,” Sollis commented as he thought back on delivering food with fellow officers.
During tough times like the pandemic that we have all faced in one way or another, it is important for Chicago Police Officers to come together to help support the community. Sollis recounted the multiple ways his district has participated in food drives by part- nering with different churches. To his surprise, Lola reached out to them first.
As someone who has worked with community relations and the CAPS officers in different districts, Lola knew they would be eager to help her on her mission to provide food for the elderly.
“She had established connections with different officers, and she had seen that there was an excess of food being delivered to one lo-
cation, and she used the network through her connections of work- ing with the community policing officers to get it to several differ- ent locations, which was absolutely phenomenal,” Sollis explained.
He thought back to the community work he has been involved in, such as organizing boxes or helping serve food. “We enjoy par- ticipating in it quite a bit,” he remarked.
Donating time and effort to provide food for the community is something Sollis sees as a great opportunity to continue fostering relationships with residents. Whether partnering with churches or someone as thoughtful as Lola, Sollis felt deep gratitude for partic- ipating in something that brought joy to so many.
“Them contacting us and giving us a chance to help them with it definitely helps to establish trust and build relationships with the people in the community as police officers,” Sollis observed. “Things are a little tough right now,” he continued. “So anything that we can do to help make connections and not just be there when something bad happens is very helpful for us to get started on building the trust back with the community.”
Putting food on the Thanksgiving table for residents in 14th District
Chicago Police Officers worked tirelessly to show their appreciation for community resi- dents by providing warm, ready-to-eat meals during Thanksgiving.
Officers in 014 worked with the Puerto Rican Police Association (PRPA) to distribute 300 tur- key meals at Aspira High School on Nov. 24. The turkeys were packaged with baked potatoes, cranberry sauce and canned goods including beans, corn and gravy.
“They got a whole Thanksgiving meal,” said
Officer Elizabeth Rios, the 14th District CAPS
community organizer. “So they could make a family meal with the turkey and all the trimmings.”
14th District Sergeant Michael Edens and Officer Daniel Guz- man participated in distributing meals, while officers helped with outreach to drive residents to the event. Rios explained that indi- viduals and families who pick up food are not necessarily homeless but struggling with food insecurity.
“They’re serving families that are coming without jobs or in-
come,” she shared. “So they know of these lo- cations where they can get food and meals that they can serve on their tables.”
Once the Thanksgiving meal giveaway had ended, officers took leftover food, mostly non- perishables, to Good Hope and San Luca food pantries. San Luca specifically offers cooked food, especially in the cold winter, to anyone who needs a warm meal.
“Those are the two main, big pantries that have a lot of people who come in our District,” Rios said. “They’re popular because of all the community members
that they help out.”
This example of 14th District officers giving back to the com-
munity is just one of the many instances of Chicago Police Officers helping residents during the holiday. And knowing that they helped brighten at least one family is more than enough reward.
“It’s nice to know that there were families that had a meal on their table,” Rios said. “At least for Thanksgiving.”
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