‘Thank a Cop’

ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE  Parish­ioners of Our Lady of the Mountain (OLM), St. Mark’s and St. Luke’s in Long Valley, have been depositing cards and gift cards that express gratitude for law-enforcement personnel into eye-catching bins at their respective churches for the “Thank a Cop” drive.

LONG VALLEY  Several well-publicized shootings of police officers around the U.S. in recent months have placed law-enforcement officials under fire — literally — but have also been inspiring the faithful of the three parishes here — Our Lady of the Mountain (OLM), St. Mark’s and St. Luke’s — to show their heartfelt appreciation to the local “men and women in blue” for many risks they take and sacrifices they make to keep the public safe.

For the past few weeks, the three faith communities in this rural township have been collecting “thank you” cards, $10 gift cards to major fast-food restaurants and coffee and donut shops and other tokens of appreciation from parishioners as part of a drive, called “Thank a Cop.” Pam Hodgskin, an OLM parishioner and mother of a police officer, who devised the campaign, said she expects to hand-deliver these items to local police departments, after Labor Day as an expression the gratitude of the faithful here. Parishioners have been placing the cards and other items in colorful, eye-catching bins, located in the vestibules of their respective churches. Hodgskin also invites readers of The Beacon to participate in the “Thank a Cop” drive and ask everyone to keep the officers in their prayers.

“It [the drive] shows how much we think about our police officers, pray for them and appreciate them. We thank them for protecting us,” Hodgskin said. “The response to the drive has been good. The people have been good. We have to take care of them,” she said.

So far, Hodgskin has collected hundreds of cards and far more than $100 in gift cards with many more expected over these last two weeks of the drive. She reports that most of the unsealed cards contain gift cards, while it seems that most of the sealed cards also contain gift cards. Earlier this month, children from the Vacation Bible School (VBS) at OLM wrote cards and put together Police Officer’s Appreciation Kits with the tag line, “Some sweets before you hit the streets,” under the direction of Kim Smith, the parish’s secretary. The kits included various types of candy, including: a Life Saver to remind the police that “they are one”; a Starburst for the burst of energy that they need; a PayDay, because they “aren’t doing it for the money”; Hershey Kisses to show love for them; gum to help everyone stick together; a Tootsie Roll because they have to roll with the punches; a Peppermint Patty to help them keep their cool; a Snickers bar to help them keep their humor; and a Mounds bar for the mounds of courage that they show.

“We appreciate all you do. Thanks for keeping our community safe,” the VBS students state at the bottom of the card for the Police Officer’s Appreciation Kit.

In early July, Hodgskin came up with the “Thank a Cop” drive, while traveling to Mass at OLM. She heard a radio report about the shooting of two on-duty police officers — a story that hit her hard, since she comes from a law-enforcement family. Hodgskin’s late father, John Prunty, served as a N.Y.C. police officer. Her brother, John, is retired from the N.Y. Police Department. Hodgskin’s son left the Philadelphia Police Department to become a Pennsylvania State Trooper. The shootings followed the highly-publicized incident in Dallas on July 7, when a gunman opened fire and killed five city police officers.

“Because I have a son out there [serving as a police officer], it’s always tense,” said Hodgskin, who spoke about the two police murders before Mass that day to the celebrant, Msgr. Raymond Lopatesky, director of Diocesan Ministry to Retired Priests, who has served as a police chaplain and asked the congregation to pray for law-enforcement officers. “I wanted to do something, not just think about it.”

So, Hodgskin spoke with Msgr. Joseph Goode, pastor of OLM and St. Mark’s, who endorsed her “Thank a Cop” drive and suggested that it might include all three Long Valley parishes. She plans to deliver the cards and other items to the Washington Township Police Department, a N.J. State Trooper barracks and another police precinct.

“Thank you for all you do to keep us safe in an increasingly dangerous world. Your service has not gone unappreciated. Without your watchful eye, evil would go unchecked,” one local parishioner writes in a card to the police officers, while another contributor writes in a card, “I am grateful for this opportunity to say thank you for the job you do. It comes at a time when we need to express our appreciation.”

In a recent bulletin, Msgr. Goode encouraged parishioners from the three Long Valley faith communities to contribute to the “Thank a Cop” drive.

“In light of the several murders of officers over the past year and most recently the past two weeks, it is time for us to stand up and thank these fine men and women, who put their lives on the line each and every day to protect us. They need to know that we are grateful for all they do,” Msgr. Goode writes.

To donate to the “Thank a Cop” card drive, call Pam Hodgskin at (908) 832-2965, or email her at [email protected].