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Virginia Sheriffs’ Association
The Voice of Virginia’s Sheriffs & Deputies

The Hampton Sheriff’s Office was one of many organizations that volunteered at 7am in August at the Hampton JC Penney store in support of the Hampton YMCA’s Bright Beginnings program. The YMCA partners with local businesses and fundraises throughout the year to help provide back to school clothing for children in the YMCA’s summer camp program.

Twenty Hampton sheriff deputies and staffers volunteered for the early morning outing requiring them to mentor and shop with children from the camp during the four hour program. Several deputies had just completed a twelve hour shift.

More than 30 children from the summer camp program were unloaded to cheers and applause from Hampton’s finest to include Sheriff Deputies, police, fire and a host of other agencies from the city.

Each child was given $150 for shopping and a list of clothing items and sizes prepared by their parents. Deputies first joined their shopping buddy with an hour long program of games, crafts, songs and reinforcement stories promoting literacy and good nutrition. It was now time to shop and shop they did as dozens of shopping carts roamed the isles of JC Penney’s children section. The pairs shopped for shoes, shirts, tops, slacks and jackets. After numerous trips to the busy dressing room, items were crossed off each child’s list. The check out lines were cluttered with the blue New Beginnings t-shirts worn by the deputies and other volunteers as the children saw there selections bagged and tagged for the ride home.

The morning ended with each child receiving a school back pack filled with school supplies. The children then received a huge send off by the volunteers as they boarded the bus better prepared for the new school year.