Sidney Police Explorers raising funds for charity trip

Sidney’s Police Explorer Post #607 is raising money to take its youth to Denver for a day of learning and community service.

SPD Officer Adrian Smith hopes to take his nine explorers to Ronald McDonald House to prepare and serve food to the needy.

“It gets them out of Sidney, gets them looking at different things,” Smith said. “We’ll walk through the Children’s Hospital and meet some of them and some of the doctors I know. They’ll see some kids who are a little less fortunate. It’s for a good cause.”

The Explorers program, started three months ago, is for youths ages 14 to 21 who are interested in law enforcement careers, including the justice system.

“They learn everything from simple traffic stops to defensive tactics to Nebraska state laws and the amendments that affect law enforcement, like the fourth amendment,” Smith said. “They learn almost everything you would need to know in law enforcement except for certain things too dangerous to teach them. Techniques kids should not know.”

In addition to education and job shadowing, the youths receive hands-on experience.

They will be helping out with traffic control at upcoming events, such as Oktoberfest.

“That’s where we’ll be using them the most,” Smith said. “They’ll be manning the crosswalks. That allows us to handle other calls, where we’ve been shorthanded in the past.”

Youths in the program also receive CPR and first aid training, among other certifications.

“When they graduate from college, because we push that, and get into a law enforcement career, they’ll have a whole book of stuff they’ve done,” Smith said. “It’s really good to see when you’re a law enforcement agency. When you’re looking for applicants, you want to see those types of guys and gals.”

Ronald McDonald House is “close to my heart,” Smith said, but the program needs donations to cover travel expenses for the trip, planned for late July.

“We’re so new we don’t really have a bankroll to support this whole thing,” he said. “We’re going to be doing a car wash and bake sale at the end of June, at the high school parking lot.”

Organizations provide for the needy by sponsoring and preparing meals, Smith explained.

“We want to cook two meals,” Smith said. “We got into the Denver History Museum that’s right across the street for free, so we have something else to do while we’re there.”

He added, “Our main focus is getting the funds to make the food.”

Guiding youths has been great, Smith said.

“The kids are not only giving me a challenge, but I think I’m giving them a big challenge. It pushes both ways,” he said. “The biggest thing is them getting real world knowledge, so they’re more in tune with what their plans are when they do go off to college.”

Donations should be made out to Sidney Police Explorer Post #607 and can be delivered to Sidney Police Department, 1715 Illinois St. For more information about the Explorers program, contact SPD Officer Austin Smith at [email protected].