Shop With a Hero program seeks donations

The Poplar Bluff Fraternal Order of Police No. 48 and Imo’s Pizza are teaming up for a Black Friday special to raise funds to help make Christmas brighter for less fortunate children.

The Black Friday fundraiser is one of several held this year to support the FOP’s annual Shop With a Hero program.

Imo’s Pizza will donate 10% of all sales from 4 to 10 p.m. Friday to the FOP, said Poplar Bluff Police Patrolman Zachary Tubb, the FOP’s secretary.

Customers, he said, also will receive 10% off their order during that same time.

Fundraising, according to Tubb, is going well, but slower than in years’ past.

“We are still receiving donations; we’ve seen some loss of donations most likely due to COVID, but, luckily, the events we have had so far have been of great quality,” Tubb explained.

The FOP received an “early donation from Walmart this year that kicked things off,” Tubb said.

The FOP received $3,750 from the recent Badge of Honor Benefit Run. It is one of four organizations to share the proceeds from the run.

“We had a meeting with the Rotary Club (last week); they will be issuing a donation,” Tubb said.

The FOP, Tubb said, also received a donation from a “shirt drive” held by Barker’s Towing, Poplar Bluff Realty, Southeast Signs and Graphics and River Radio and another donation from Century 21 American Realty.

“Even with the struggle with the lack of donations, we hope to provide services to the same quantity of children that we did in the past,” Tubb said. “ ... We’re still looking at how much allowance (money) for each child,” but the goal is 100 children and $100 each.

As in years’ past, the children chosen for the shopping program will be from Poplar Bluff’s four elementary schools, as well as its kindergarten center; Twin Rivers’ elementary schools at Fisk and Qulin; and Neelyville’s elementary schools at Neelyville and Hillview. The names will be provided by the counselors at each school.

The children chosen for this year’s event, each will be given money to spend as they shop with a local first responder at Walmart. A shopping date has not been set at this time.

In 2019, 115 children participated in the shopping event.

Participating in the event is something the officers look forward to each year, Tubb said.

“I say for me, it’s going to a call and (seeing) the children on what could possibly be the worst day and then stepping away from that and being able to see a child smile in that eagerness of Christmas,” Tubb said. “I’ve done this every year I’ve been a police officer; my days off, holidays or my vacation, I show up” for the shopping event.

At this time, Tubb said, the FOP is planning for the shopping event to be “typical as in years’ past, (but) we’re considering any recommendations from the health department as needed.”

Participating in the event each year are members of the Poplar Bluff Police Department, Butler County Sheriff’s Department, Missouri State Highway Patrol, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center police, Poplar Bluff Fire Department, Butler County EMS, Medic One, Air Evac Lifeteam, Missouri Department of Conservation, JROTC and Missouri Army National Guard.

Donations may be made by mailing them or dropping them off at the police department, 1111 Poplar St. Checks should be made payable to the Poplar Bluff Fraternal Order of Police.