by Chuck Seaver, South Lake Tablet
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office hosted the 2nd annual “Cookies with a Cop” spring break festival at the Sheriff’s Office – South District Office in Clermont on Tuesday, March 17th. The event is intended to strengthen community relationships with children and caregivers of all ages during the school spring break period.
Public safety personnel from the sheriff’s office and area agencies were on hand to provide fun facts and tours of police cars, fire trucks and K9 service dogs. Mission BBQ of Clermont was in attendance to provide yummy treats and give a glimpse of its infamous “ready for anything” facsimile military tactical truck.
Children had the opportunity to decorate their own cookies provided by the sheriff’s department, while the adults had a chance to mingle with deputies and learn the latest in child safety tips and upcoming summer break programs offered to the South Lake community.
Read to Sydney and the Kiwanis Club of Clermont were on hand to provide free reading materials and swim safety literature to both the children and adults as the Florida heat looms in the coming weeks. The Moose Lodge #1615 of South Lake County, partnered with Safe Surfin Foundation, provided digital fingerprints and photographs for children. Safe Surfin is a nationwide organization, equipped with EZ Child ID technology that captures all the vital information required by the Amber Alert system. The system produces a child identification card and a child ID on a USB. The system also records a digital video of the child with the child’s voice that is saved in digital AVI format. The parent receives a printed child ID card at the time of the recording.
Other exciting news announced at the event was the return this year of the sheriff’s office’s annual “Project Kid Connect.” The annual event, which provides backpacks and school supplies to children, will be held in July this year at the South District Sheriff’s Office located at 15855 State Road 50, Clermont. The free event requires that the recipient child be present and be a Lake County student to receive a free backpack with supplies. There will also be plenty of fun for everyone, which includes food, public service demonstrations, and displays for all ages.
Visit https://safesurfin.org for additional information on child identification and online safety practices for children.
Visit https://LCSO.org for a full listing of community events, traffic alerts, and other public safety interests.
