Residents enjoy coffee with a cop at McDonald’s

By Jordan Honeycutt, Sun Journal
Original article HERE

Of the many community events the New Bern Police Department does, Coffee with a Cop may be one of the better known.

Thursday, law enforcement officials gathered at the McDonald’s at 1921 Neuse Blvd for breakfast and to meet people in the community.

NBPD Chief Toussaint Summers Jr., Deputy Chief Bobby Jones and about 10 other employees of the department were on hand.

“It’s real important for us to interact with the community and this creates a laid back atmosphere for folks to come in and just talk with us,” Summers said.

“Today, we’ve been doing just that, talking with people just about life and not necessarily law enforcement issues.”

There were customers male and female and of all races and ages that stopped by Thursday morning.

A few Easter Seals workers along with five kids stopped in for something the workers said the kids always enjoy.

“It’s actually my first time coming to this with them but yeah they try to come out every time (NBPD) are here so the kids can gain social skills and ask the officers questions about their jobs and going to McDonald’s – they love that too,” Easter Seals employee Amanda Walker said.

“They get to ask them questions about all the equipment they use and just learn about being a cop – I think a lot of kids grow up wanting to be cops so it’s interesting to them.”

Sergeant Kevin Brice also enjoyed the time with the community.

“It’s our job – we try to talk to everybody we come in contact with,” Brice said.

“Being in a smaller town, there are so many community events here that we are involved in for that reason – to stay connected with the community.”