Alliance to Host National Coffee with a Cop Day Oct. 4









September 27, 2017

Alliance to Host National Coffee with a Cop Day Oct. 4

Contact:
Susie Salisbury, Vice President Community Development
304-340-4253 ; ssalisbury@charlestonareaalliance.org


Community members and Charleston Police Department officers will come together for National Coffee with a Cop Day at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 4 at the Charleston Area Alliance to discuss ideas and learn more about each other.

Presented by the Charleston Area Alliance, Coffee with a Cop provides an opportunity for community members to sit down with officers – over coffee – and ask questions or share what is on their mind. The event is free and open to the public.
 
“In a short time, community members and police officers get to know each other and discover mutual goals for the community they work in and serve,” said Susie Salisbury, the Alliance’s vice president of community development.
 
Coffee with a Cop gives police officers opportunities, outside of crisis situations, to relax and chat with citizens in the community, while the event provides community members access and opportunity for distraction-free conversations with local officers.
 
Coffee with a Cop began as a grassroots initiative in March 2011 by the Hawthorne Police Department in Hawthorne, Calif. to better understand the needs and concerns of community residents. Since then, Coffee with a Cop’s mission of breaking down the barriers between police officers and the citizens they serve has successfully spread to all 50 states and nine countries.

National Coffee with a Cop Day is a day dedicated by the Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services Office to encourage communication and positive interactions between law enforcement agencies and the public. The Day began as part of National Community Policing Week in 2016 and now continues each year the first Wednesday in October, furthering efforts nationwide to bridge the gap between the community and the law.
 
In the past year, the Charleston Area Alliance has hosted several Coffee with a Cop events for business owners in downtown Charleston. This is the first time the community and economic development organization has hosted a National Coffee with a Cop event.
 
About the Charleston Area Alliance
The Charleston Area Alliance is an economic and community development organization. Its focus is on local business growth, job creation, innovating and attracting industry to the region and fostering an enhanced quality of life for all. The organization also empowers community members by providing networking opportunities, business development and resources to help them grow. For more information, visit www.charlestonareaalliance.org.
 
About Coffee with a Cop
Coffee with a Cop events are opportunities to build relationships in order to better problem solve with the people officers serve. There are no speeches or specific topics – just informal conversations about what matters to community residents. For more information, visit www.coffeewithacop.com.