Photo By Jessica Haas | IN THE PHOTO, Bartlett police officers made a surprise visit to Contract Specialist...... read more read more
As children, we grow up dreaming of what we want to be when we grow up. When we set our sights on something and become passionate about it, nothing can get in our way.
One Memphis District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers child is very interested in police officers, to say the least. Anything having to do with the police, he loves it.
"I'm not sure how he became interested, but he's loved officers since before he was 1-year-old," Contract Specialist Sequoria Wilson said. "Whenever he would hear a siren, he would get very excited. Once, I remember a patrol car was beside us at the red light, and he unbuckled his car seat and stood up so he could see out the window even more. I got pulled over because of that, and he kept saying, "Jail, jail, momma jail." I honestly thought it was a phase, but the older he gets, the more curious he gets."
Wilson said that her son asks to tour police stations every day, and whenever they see an officer, he asks if he can speak to them.
"I honestly don't know what sparked it because we have no police in our family," she added. "(He loves) everything; there is nothing he doesn't like. He loves the sirens, handcuffs, guns, and talking on the radio."
Because her son has asked on several occasions to tour police stations, Wilson attempted to tour a station once before. Still, unfortunately, she couldn't make it happen.
"Seeing the disappointment on his face when we left the station broke my heart, so I started to make up excuses when he would ask me to try again," she said.
Wilson's son was turning 5-years-old earlier this month, so determined to make his dream come true, she tried again, this time calling a different police station. She decided to ask if they would be able to make an appearance at his birthday party, hoping to surprise him.
"I honestly didn't think they would come, but I called to ask anyway because my thought process was all they could say is no and if I don't try, how could I be sure that would be the answer," Wilson said. "I now have more respect for the Bartlett Police Department (BPD), and I'm very thankful they were able to help make my son's day a success. There was no hesitation when I called."
She said she explained her son's love for police and asked if they could come out and let him tour a patrol car. The person she spoke to on the phone said they love to do things like that and encourage little people to join the force.
The day finally came, and in keeping their word, multiple police cars showed up to their house, sirens blaring off and on to make sure Wilson's son knew they were coming.
"The feeling was joy," Wilson recalled. "My heart smiled because with the help of the Bartlett Police Department, I was finally able to make one of my son's dreams come true, and that was riding in a police car. I didn't capture his initial reaction on video, but when he first saw the cars turn on the street, he started jumping up and down, pointing and smiling, saying, "Momma look, look the police coming down our street."
As they got closer and realized what was happening, Wilson said he tried to play it cool.
"They gave out goody bags to all the kids, took my son on a ride around the block, and took pictures," Wilson said. "The goody bags had masks, a BPD coin, coloring book, candy, toy shields, and more."
It wasn't just Wilson and her son, who had a blast either. The police were just as happy to make an appearance, as it's something they love doing when they have the time.
"It's a great feeling for the officers to come out and participate and to make a kid's day," Police Officer Jeremy Springer of the Bartlett Police Department said. "He was clearly excited about us being there."
Indeed, partnership and taking care of people extends beyond work hours for those of us working in the Corps of Engineers and in many other organizations. For the Bartlett Police, this was just another way of giving back to the community, as they and everyone present surely loved seeing the smile on Wilson's son's face.
If you’d like to see this great story in video (that actual went viral), it aired on Fox 13 and was also posted here: https://www.fox13memphis.com/news/local/bartlett-police-give-young-boy-birthday-surprise-lifetime/VO7KVDB27VCM5D7XGHTO2KTYZA/?fbclid=IwAR3LEC4pV33aXFeojgF2NPDu8ij9Y9a_E0DiwzKyqPBeyetfLKlHjMi63dA. Hope you enjoy!
| Date Taken: | 10.20.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 10.20.2020 17:47 |
| Story ID: | 381365 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 33 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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