- November 20, 2024
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Kyrae Pulliam, 10, had never been inside a law enforcement vehicle before Friday night.
But for the Flagler County Sheriff's Office's annual Christmas with a Deputy event, he got free reign to run the siren and use the intercom in Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Officer Dustin Bonds' pickup truck on the way to a law enforcement-sponsored Christmas shopping spree at Target, where the two were among about 100 kid-cop pairs packing the aisles.
Kyrae got a remote-controlled helicopter, among other goodies, and looks forward to trying it out in his yard.
"It's really cool," he said as he waited to have his picture taken with Santa. "I want to go out and play with it."
Each child had a $150 gift card to spend, supervised by an officer who helped them shop.
The money on the cards came from donations collected from law enforcement officers throughout the year. The event was organized in 2009 by Flagler County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Larry Jones, who has served with the Sheriff's Office for 29 years.
"I wanted to do more than just lock people up," he said. "We wanted to do some good things. I wanted to start it because I grew up in Bunnell, and I wanted to give back to the community."
The first year, the Flagler County Sheriff's Office took 11 children shopping. This year and last year, the event has brightened the holiday season for 100 kids, and other local agencies — including the Flagler Beach Police Department, the Bunnell Police Department and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission — have pitched in.
Santa even arrived on a Palm Coast fire truck at the start of the event, and Flagler County Sheriff’s Office IT Specialist Carlos Hernandez took photos of kids and their shopping partners with Santa.
This year, the event also had its own logo, created by Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Deputy George Bender, a SWAT team member with a background in design and computer graphics.
Detective Roger Spires, who helped organize the event, said the children are chosen through input from school teachers and administrators.
“Next year, if there are more sponsors, maybe we can do a lot more,” Jones said. “This is just to see the kids smile. Every kid deserves to have a jolly Christmas.”
BOX: Want to pitch in?
Community members interested in donating for next year's Christmas with a Deputy can do so through the Intracoastal Bank at 1290 Palm Coast Parkway N.W. in Palm Coast.
For more information, contact Flagler County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Larry Jones at 586-2631.
