Reading police chat with patrons at ‘Coffee with a Cop’ event

By Liam Migdail-Smith, Berks and Beyond
Original article HERE

Reading police Officer Jose Gonzalez said he sees a lot of value in cops and the people they serve getting to know one another before they’re thrown into a tense situation.

That’s why he and three of his colleagues spent Saturday morning chatting with diners at the McDonald’s at Ninth and Spring streets.The “Coffee with a Cop” event aimed to give residents a chance to bring their concerns to police and give the officers a chance to show the public that a police badge shouldn’t be intimidating.

“This is something so that we’re able to relate to the public, so they understand that we are human beings and they shouldn’t be afraid to talk to us,” said Gonzalez, the city’s community service officer.

It behooves officers to cultivate relationships in the community because people will be more likely to step forward to offer information or help with investigations. And, he said, it’s important that residents feel comfortable approaching police and know they’re there to help.

“It’s important that they understand that,” Gonzalez said.The officers circulated among the patrons, speaking with regulars as well as people who had dropped by for the event.

Nilda Nieves, 55, fell into the latter category.

She’s involved with a youth ministry and community service program at the Reading Intermediate High School and was there to ask officers to come speak to the students.

“We want the police officers to come and meet the young people and build a relationship with them,” she said.

Nieves herself was reminded of the importance of police recently. She moved to a house on McKnight Street only to find it burglarized less than a month later. The police responded immediately and were a huge help, she said.

“There are good people who want to stay in this community,” she said. “And we’re believing they’re (police) the ones who are going to help us stay in this community.”

Brianna Marte, 16, Reading, came to do research.

She has her sights set on becoming a police officer and came to ask the cops about their careers. She said it’s important for people to realize that most officers are in it for their communities.

“There’s cops that actually want to help people and communicate and have that relationship with the community,” she said.