By Meghan McCormick
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is part of a series of articles about local traditions during the holidays.
Each Christmas, officers and civilian employees with the Norman Police Department do their part to help Santa Claus deliver gifts to good little boys and girls.
Norman Police Master Officer Shawn Hawkins said it has become a department tradition to adopt a family through the Community Action Agency.
"This year, we got two families," he said.
Hawkins said once a family has written its wish list, it's given to the Community Action Agency in Norman. The wish list often includes clothes, shoes and maybe toys for the children.
The Community Action Agency then furnishes a list to police, Hawkins said.
"They send us the wish list and I usually put that out as an e-mail. Employees can then purchase something off the list or make a monetary donation," he said.
Hawkins said this is an event when the entire department unites as a team.
"It's a great cause," he said. "We had a really outstanding turnout last year of donations for the one family that we adopted, so this year I decided to challenge the department even further by taking on a second family."
Hawkins said the two adopted families consist of three mothers and 10 children. Officers and employees will either bring gifts to NPD or drop off monetary donations.
"We have four employees who will take all the monetary donations and then go purchase things off the wish list," he said.
Hawkins said once the gifts are brought in, it's time to wrap.
"We wrap all of the presents and take them to the Community Action Center and put a card in there so parents know which gift goes to which child," he said.
Hawkins said the economic situation has changed in the past year, but that isn't stopping Norman police from helping children and parents.
"It's been a little tighter. Economic times are tougher. We continue to encourage everybody to give, and we are determined to make it happen," Hawkins said.
Police Chief Phil Cotten said this is either the third or fourth year the department has united to provide Christmas gifts for a family.
"Everybody gets in the spirit even the new cadets," he said.
Cotten said this year the police academy's cadets have offered their help.
"I think it's great and really shows the caliber of employees that we have who want to give to someone else," Cotten said.
He said the department is trying its best to get the most donations as possible.
"These families have been screened by Community Action, we know the need is there," he said.
Meghan McCormick 366-3539 mmccormick@normantranscript.com
