MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Milwaukee police officers from across the city are gathering with church congregations to host several different community events aligning with National Faith and Blue week.
Officers at Saturday's District One event say that these events are part of a bigger picture to bridge the gap between officers and the community.
Officer Jordan Emmons has been on the force for 14 years. He told TMJ4 that building those connections is more important now than in the past.
"Obviously we’ve had some tense incidents in the past few years. We're hoping this type of event will show that we are here, we are friendly,” said Emmons. “There are a lot of people out in the community right now that don’t have a lot of contact with the police and we’re hoping to bring that connection.”
Residents and churchgoers say creating that relationship is a vital part of feeling safe in their own neighborhood.
“As people who live and worship in the downtown area, having a sense of security and safety is really, really important,” said Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Jim Huebner.
These events are taking place after another violent week of crime in Milwaukee, including the shooting of a child and three deaths from reckless driving.
Police chief Jeffrey Norman says being transparent with community members is necessary following tough moments.
“The goal is to continue to build trust,” said Norman. “We have high trust in parts of our community, somewhat trust in others, and in other parts of our community we don’t have any trust. People in our department need to work on all three, no one is more important than the other.”
Community events for National Faith and Blue week continue until Monday night. A full list is available on their website.
