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Canfield cops plan Safety Day on Saturday
By susan tebben
canfield
Drug money is now being used to help the children of Canfield.
Using money forfeited during drug seizures, the Canfield Police Department will put on Canfield Safety Day, a free event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
“We constantly bring in this forfeited drug money, and we wanted to be able to use it to give back to our community,” said Canfield police Chief Chuck Colucci.
At the event, children will be able to have their picture taken and included on a free “identi-card,” Colucci said. The card also will have their name, address, phone number, parents’ contact information and other helpful information for law enforcement. The information can be used in case a child is lost, kidnapped or has a medical emergency.
“If the parents consent, we would like to build a database of this information,” Colucci said.
Parents have been asking for an event like Safety Day, and the department is planning to make more identi-cards at community events.
Also included will be chances to tour the police department and meet officers, including police dog, Thor.
For adults, detectives will discuss identity theft and online fraud-avoidance strategies because of the holiday season. Assistant Chief Scott Weamer hopes to impart more awareness of the Senior Watch program.
“It’s for senior citizens without a family support system in the area,” Weamer said. “An auxiliary officer will visit them, a lot like a welfare check, and we put them in touch with community services they might need. We’d love to see it expand.”
Weamer said the department has had trouble getting in touch with eligible seniors to let them know about the program, so the Safety Day was a good opportunity to teach the community about it.
“All officers are volunteering their time, and we have businesses providing refreshments,” Colucci said. “We plan on making this a two-to-three-times-a-year thing.”