Donning a police officer uniform, four-year-old Graycin Ryan looked up at the real-life officer, grinning as he accepted a Bloomington Police Department patch.
“I’m a cop,” Graycin said.
Graycin and his mother were one of several attendees at BPD’s “Coffee with a Cop” event Monday night at the Hyatt Place in Bloomington.
It was the first gathering of the year, and offered Bloomington residents a chance to meet and speak with BPD officers and personnel in a casual setting.
BPD organized several events of this kind last year, at locations such as Kroger and the Convention Center. This year, the department aims to offer “Coffee with a Cop” on a monthly basis in different areas of town, Capt. Steve Kellams said.
The next event will take place 6:30 p.m. March 8 at the College Mall food court.
News surrounding Ferguson and recent points of tension between citizens and law enforcement have sparked a national conversation about police community engagement.
In light of this, Diekhoff emphasized the importance of building relationships with residents and providing clarity for issues involving law enforcement.
“Most people in here have never really interacted with police,” BPD Chief Mike Diekhoff said. “We’re all human.”
About 10 BPD officers and other personnel were in attendance. The event gave them a chance to slow down and interact with community members face-to-face, Capt. Scott Oldham said.
“This is as much for our guys as it is for the public,” Oldham said.
One of the Bloomington residents who attended the event was 75-year-old Donna Brinton. Brinton came to speak with officers about a number of concerns, the most important being a recent incident of credit card fraud she said she experienced.
Brinton hadn’t reported the crime to the police because she assumed her fraud protection company would handle it, she said.
After speaking with officers at Monday’s event, she said she understood she should file an official report, and said she planned to do so soon.
Her neighbor, Nancy McFall, 67, said she appreciated the opportunity to present her concerns to members of law enforcement.
“The cops have gotten a really bad rep across the country,” McFall said. “This has been very informative for us.”
Four-year-old Graycin recognized one of the officers at the event, Kevin Frank, from a previous encounter.
In January, Graycin called 911, telling law enforcement that police needed to come to his house immediately because his toe hurt, Frank said.
His mother, unaware that Graycin had made the call, said she was shocked to see three officers show up at her door shortly after.
Graycin ran down the stairs in his cop uniform costume, yelling, “You came! You came!” his mother, Jammie Ryan said.
Graycin asked the officers to take him to the hospital so he could ride in their cop car. Instead, Frank said, the officers let him sit in the patrol car and turn on the lights and siren.
Frank said the surprising call from Graycin provided a comical break after a long day of responding to reports of crime.
“It makes you feel good,” Frank said. “It makes you want to keep going with your day knowing you made someone happy.”
On Monday, Graycin asked Frank if he could come back to his house and bring him cop stickers. Frank said he would stop by as soon as this week.
Ryan said her son has wanted to be a cop ever since he started spending time with a family friend, who serves as a local jail correctional officer.
Graycin said he wants to be a cop because they help people and “drive their cars like crazy.”
“They put bad boys in jail,” Graycin said.
