Operation C.A.R.E. Bears Brings Kids, Cops Together at Christmas

"PawPaw, can I keep this?"

That small voice caught the attention of the Illinois State Trooper who had just delivered Christmas packages to a needy family.

"No, son, that's not yours."

Trooper Bridget Rice had thought that the little boy whose face had lit up at the sight of all of the Christmas presents that she and an executive from one of their corporate sponsors had just delivered was one of the children benefitting from Operation C.A.R.E. Bears.

The troopers and the telecommunicators of Illinois State Police District 22 based in Ullin raise funds all year to fulfill the Christmas wishes of needy children and provide food vouchers for a Christmas meal for their families. The project began in 1994, and also has had local support from its inception from corporate sponsors like Short Enterprises, which owns several McDonald's Restaurants in southern Illinois.

December 20 was delivery day. Not only do the troopers help to brighten children's Christmas mornings, the kids and the families get to see a softer side of the State Police. It's a win-win.

Rice asked why the boy couldn't keep the gift. The boy's grandfather said that they were just visiting the family that was receiving the gifts. He explained that they had been staying there because their home had burned down.

Rice left but knew there was much to do. The folks at District 22 got busy and made some calls. Later that day, armed with the clothing sizes of the two boys in that family and their Christmas wish list, she and Kenny Klein, the post's telecommunications supervisor, went shopping.

District 22 works hard to find children and families who have "fallen through the cracks," as Klein has termed it. This year, they bought and wrapped presents for 78 children and gave food vouchers for 25 families.

Every dollar that District 22 raises for Operation C.A.R.E. Bears goes toward the Christmas gifts and food vouchers. The telecommunicators and troopers volunteer their time. They hold fund-raisers throughout the year, but also get support from other organizations and businesses such as Short Enterprises and Wal-Mart.

"C.A.R.E. Bears touches everybody's heart, just the fact that it goes to children that don't have Christmas," said Katie Goss, the public relations representative for Short Enterprises. "The State Police do such a great job with this program. It's a great organization, just like every organization that we do help. The [State Police] just go far and beyond."

Goss said Short Enterprises, based in Anna, Ill., has been a sponsor for C.A.R.E. Bears' beginning with her grandfather, Jim Short. The annual grant of $5,000 to the project comes from their golf tournaments and from the change collected in the canisters in their restaurants for the Ronald McDonald House Charities. Goss said that many people don't realize that of the funds raised locally, 75 percent of that money is used as grants to local charities; 25 percent of it goes to the Ronald McDonald House in St. Louis.

Goss's father helped make deliveries this year, but she, too, has helped on C.A.R.E. Bear Days in the past.

"It's such an amazing experience just to see the children [and] the environment that these kids come from," Goss said. "They don't have anything. They are just so blessed to have the smallest thing that the State Police can give them. It's such an amazing program."

Indeed.

The next day, Trooper Rice delivered presents that the little boy and his brother got to keep. The boys stood in the doorway of their temporary home, a small camper trailer, holding packages almost as big as they are. Their smiles said it all. Almost.

As she turned to leave, Rice heard her new young friend say, "I want to be just like her when I grow up."

Sources: interviews with Illinois State Police, Short Enterprises