NewsLocal NewsSummit County

Actions

Summit County kids get a head start on the holidays with second annual Christmas with a Cop

Posted at 12:14 PM, Dec 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-09 13:09:16-05

Most children make a mad dash to the toy aisle when they arrive at the store, ready to pick out the perfect toy or game to take home.

But that wasn't the case on Saturday for 11-year-old Jaydyn Kennedy.

Instead, Kennedy, a Cuyahoga Falls resident, went shopping for her friends and family. 

"I always wanted to give gifts to other people," Kennedy said.

The little girl is one of five and has several close friends at school. So she packed her cart full of items she said they would love.

"I don't want to be greedy," Kennedy said.

But the 11-year-old was just one of several kids to take over the Wal-Mart in Fairlawn on Saturday morning.

The second annual Christmas with a Cop program helped nearly 120 kids get a head start on the holidays.

Officers from six Summit County departments lent a helping to the kids as they made their way through the aisles.

"It means the world to us. We see so much that isn't that great sometimes, so to be able to bring the kids shopping and see how much fun they have picking out stuff. It's a lot of fun for all of us," Pamela Helmick, of the University of Akron Police Department, said. 

Each child had $110 to spend at the store, thanks to fundraisers and a grant from Wal-Mart.

"You're their superhero for the day so it's pretty awesome," Sgt. Mike Walsh, of the Summit County Sheriff's Department, said.