Ocoee PD to host 'Coffee with a Cop'

IF YOU GO

OCOEE POLICE “COFFEE WITH A COP”

WHEN: 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, March 11

WHERE: Starbucks, 10300 W. Colonial Drive

CONTACT: Officer Patera Scott-Marsh, (407) 905-3160, Ext. 3024 or [email protected]

INFO: coffeewithacop.org

—

OCOEE — Many police officers and residents agree that they must collaborate to improve their communities. But with the busy, intense formality of officers’ duties, some residents feel uncomfortable approaching officers with important non-emergency matters when officers are on duty.

For more informal relations in a relaxed space, the Ocoee Police Department has joined a national initiative through the Department of Justice, “Coffee with a Cop.”

Several officers, likely including Chief Charles Brown, will host Ocoee’s first such event from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, March 11, at the Starbucks at 10300 W. Colonial Drive.

“We hope that community members will feel comfortable to ask questions, bring concerns or simply get to know our officers,” Brown said. “These interactions are the foundation of community partnerships.”

The Hawthorne (California) Police Department began the program in March 2011 at a local McDonald’s and has continued it every six weeks since, in varying areas around that community. Now at least 36 states have departments conducting this program.

“I think the key is, unfortunately, most of the time we’re meeting people in not the best of circumstances, and we’re hoping to change that...just having casual conversation,” said Sgt. Mireya Iannuzzi, one of the officers who will attend. “I’m thinking it’s going to be a positive experience for officers and the community. Setting is everything, whether you’re getting pulled over or a victim of a crime — this is much different. (Starbucks) will be providing the coffee, so I’m sure that’ll help, too.”

Iannuzzi is unaware of any similar program in Orange County, but Sanford has a similar program, she said.

“We want to make it at least quarterly, maybe every other month,” Iannuzzi said. “That’s why I’m hoping it goes very well, so we can do it on a semi-regular basis. The manager at Starbucks is very open to the concept and providing coffee and a reserved area.”

But even after internal discussions for a long time about hosting this event, Ocoee officers are unsure what to expect, although they remain excited and optimistic that they will have a good turnout, Iannuzzi said.

“We’re thinking we’ll probably get questions from homeowners associations, just the general public wanting to know what we do in the neighborhood and how to look at suspicious activity,” she said. “They don’t want to call 911 but want to know how to handle suspicious behavior. We’ll cover different things ranging from credit card fraud to keeping your home safe over the holidays and the non-emergency number.”

One of the major benefits of this event Iannuzzi is hoping for is that officers will feel the support of their community.

“Unfortunately, with a lot of incidents in the country in recent months, sometimes officers think the community doesn’t support us 100% of the time, and I know that’s not the case,” she said. “They’re going to have their questions and concerns but really have the appreciation for our jobs. The great majority of the community supports us, and we can forget. I’m hoping the officers get that out of it: that encouragement to keep moving forward, doing the job that they do. It gets lonely sometimes standing out here, doing the daily grind.”

“Coffee with a Cop” could help dissipate that loneliness, because the staff is trying to recruit two full-time officers, maybe from the general public after training, Iannuzzi said. That includes another new event: an open house March 31, with plans for free food, displays and facility tours.

“Normally, we do most of our recruiting at academies, such as Valencia,” Iannuzzi said. “We’re missing out on people who have already been certified who, for whatever reason, haven’t found a job.”

Maybe Iannuzzi will find those people March 11, starting with something as simple as a chat over a cup of joe.

Contact Zak Kerr at [email protected].