By JAN McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
As Wood County Sheriff’s Deputy Dana Bird approached a man sitting on an old riding mower in Grand Rapids, the man proclaimed his innocence.
“I didn’t do anything,” he said to the deputy.
Bird quickly reassured the man, Brian Browning, that he wasn’t in any trouble, and presented him with a $100 gift card to Kroger.
A look of relief came over the man’s face as he accepted the card. Browning went on to tell Bird he is a veteran and is undergoing tests to determine if he has Parkinson’s or multiple sclerosis.
Browning has a riding mower that he uses to cut grass at neighbors’ lots in his manufactured home park. But on Saturday, he was riding on his second mower – minus the blades – that he uses to get around.
“This is my power chair,” he said.
Browning was one of 25 local residents surprised by “Santa on patrol” in July over the weekend.
The Wood County Sheriff’s Office collaborated with Kroger to hand out $100 gift cards to the grocery and gas station. Also spreading “Christmas in July” joy were the Sandusky County Sheriff’s Office, as well as a sheriff’s office in Michigan and another in Virginia.
Wood County road deputies were given the gift cards and instructed to hand them out to people who looked like they could use some good news.
“They are looking for people having a bad day,” like someone fixing a flat tire on the side of the road, or working on their car in the driveway, Wood County Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn said.
“This is another positive way to interact with the community,” Wasylyshyn said. “We’re always looking for ways to have positive interactions with the people we serve.”
So is Kroger, according to Mark Bruce, corporate affairs manager for Kroger’s Columbus division.
“We want to give them something when they don’t expect it,” Bruce said.
Wasylyshyn and road deputies randomly handed out 25 cards for $100 each. Deputy Bird headed out to the Tontogany – Grand Rapids area to find people who looked like they could really use the cards for food or gas.
Law enforcement often encounters people at low moments in their lives, Bird said. But programs like the “Santa on patrol” in July, the “Christmas Spectacular” over the holidays, and Shop with a Cop for children, all help create positive feelings about law enforcement.
Oftentimes it takes years to see the positive outcome of deputies’ interactions with families or communities, she said. But the Kroger gift cards have an immediate positive impact.
“It helps us reach out,” Bird said. “It helps us too – feeling like we make a difference.”
Bird had no trouble finding people who looked like they could use help with groceries or gas.
In Tontogany, she stopped at a home she had visited years before – on a less happy occasion. Bird presented the gift card to Tiffany Coakley and Jake Curtis.
Coakley remembered the deputy from that stressful previous encounter, and gave Bird a big hug.
“Thank you, he got the help he needed,” Coakley said of one of her children. She also said that she went for years not being able to work as a nurse after having brain surgery, and Bird shared the experience of one of her family members who also underwent brain surgery.
The couple thanked Bird for the gift card, and Bird created connections in the community – and best of all, left the home knowing her intervention years ago helped the family.
A few streets over, Bird noticed a yard sale with no customers at the moment. The family was sitting in a shady spot in the yard, trying to stay cool. The deputy presented the gift card to Alfredo and Tiffany Martinez, along with their son in second grade, Silas.
Tiffany welcomed the chance to get $100 in groceries at Kroger.
“Definitely. Oh my gosh. Who doesn’t need groceries,” she said.
That is especially true for families like hers, with three kids home on summer break.
“They can go through a cupboard quickly, Tiffany Martinez said.
A few miles to the west in Grand Rapids, Bird came upon Scott Hergert, who had just hopped off his riding mower to move items in the yard. Hergert, a minister, said he still has three kids at home – all teenagers who eat a lot.
Of course, buying gas is also a necessity, he said, gesturing to the long van in his driveway. “It takes quite a bit to fill that thing.”
Always interested in making positive connections, Bird reminded Hergert that the sheriff’s office is there to help.
“Come to us when you have problems,” she said.
