STANTONSBURG — Jamie Allred pulled her Ford Taurus into the police checkpoint between two Stantonsburg police cruisers with blue lights flashing.
It’s the kind of scene that would make anyone with an expired registration or license — or a more serious violation — nervous.
“Hello, hello. We are just checking driver’s licenses here today, young lady. How have you been?” Chief Orlando Rosario asked.
Rosario recognized Allred for her volunteer efforts caring for the elderly around Stantonsburg.
“You’re in trouble,” Rosario told her.
The 23-year-old had been caught being good.
“That being said, we’ve got a blessing we want to pass on to you,” Rosario told Allred.
Officer Elijah Munoz swung a new 40-inch smart TV into Allred’s view.
“I thank you so much for what you do,” Rosario told her. “We came out here today not because you have done something wrong, but because you have done something right, so I thank you so very much for what you do.”
“Are you serious?” Allred asked.
She bounded out of the car, threw her arms around the chief’s neck and began to cry.
“Don’t do that, sweetheart,” Rosario said, as Munoz placed the TV in Allred’s backseat.
Rosario said Allred does a lot for the community and deserves to be recognized.
Allred has lived in and around Stantonsburg for all her life.
“I have been wanting to get a new TV. The one in my room has been so slow. I have had it for like eight years. I am so thankful. It’s a great Christmas gift. It’s a blessing,” Allred said. “We are probably going to go home and hook it up and watch some TV and try to enjoy it with the whole family. We got a TV for Christmas. It’s just going to bring joy to the whole house.”
Allred is a regular volunteer around town.
“I try to help take care of the elderly, and I also do trash pickup with my little siblings and stuff,” she said. “We try to keep it kind of clean and just try to make it a better town.”
Rosario said the police department surprises residents with Christmas gifts each year.
“We do this little thing called ‘Caught You Being Good,’” Rosario said. “If somebody is coming through the checkpoint and they have their seat belt on and they are caught being good, we have got something — we want to pay it forward to you. We will pass out Christmas gifts around Christmastime.”
Sissy Farmer of Stantonsburg stopped and pulled a handful of toys out of the chief’s trunk.
“I think it’s awesome. I think it’s very sweet,” Farmer said. “Mine have everything in the world, but I will take this.”
Holly Crocker came through the checkpoint with daughter Raylee Crocker. Raylee got a fishing toy and a sliced food toy to play with.
“That was nice,” Crocker said.
Rosario said the gift giveaway helps drivers see police in a new light.
“We have been doing this for years. We don’t necessarily advertise it,” he said. “We just want the community to know that we are not just here to catch you doing wrong. We’re also here to recognize you when you are doing something positive.”
Rosario said local businesses and individuals donated money to buy the presents.
“This was funding that was 100% funded by the residents of the town of Stantonsburg,” Rosario said.
In addition to a trunk full of toys and the TVs, Rosario and Munoz handed out three citations, one for driving while license revoked, one for having no operator’s license and one for displaying a fictitious license plate.
