Saint Paul Police Foundation - St. Paul Police Foundation

$500,000 Grant Will Fund St. Paul Police Community Outreach

May 6, 2016/0 Comments/in PAL, Recent News, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by Melanie Gage

Star Tribune

The Saint Paul Police Foundation is appreciative of the generous grant from Otto-Bremer Trust. The Foundation’s work is to preserve and support public safety by marshaling community resources to strengthen the bond between the people of Saint Paul and their police department. With these additional resources the Foundation will be able to further enhance the public-safety and community relations activities of the Department ensuring the Department is an integral part of the fabric of our great community.

St. Paul police will use a new half-million-dollar grant to continue and expand community outreach programs.

The $500,0000, two-year grant from the Otto Bremer Trust was awarded to the St. Paul Police Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the department’s work. Half was released last week to the foundation, which has agreed to raise a matching $250,000 in order to receive the other half.

“In my almost 27 years at the St. Paul Police Department, this is the most significant grant for community outreach,” said Assistant Chief Todd Axtell, who helped secure the funding. “Anybody that’s been following national events understands that building trust between the community and police has to be our top priority.”

The department has to apply for the money from the foundation for specific projects, which include programs with the St. Paul Public Schools, St. Paul Parks and Recreation and YWCA of St. Paul, among others.

“We are pleased to provide funding for the critical and important work the Foundation is doing in partnership with the St. Paul Police Department,” Otto Bremer Trust co-CEO and trustee Daniel C. Reardon said in a written statement.

Axtell said he and Reardon began discussing the grant about six months ago. The department has “always struggled” to find enough money to fund outreach programs, Axtell said, while balancing other needs within its budget.

The grant will help the department achieve key goals in outreach to youth from childhood through the early 20s, Axtell said, including: drawing young people into law enforcement work with an emphasis on diversifying St. Paul police’s rank and file, breaking down barriers between officers and youth of color, and helping officers see youth through “a new lens.”

The money will help save the department’s YWCA Junior Police Academy, which was headed toward an uncertain future this year — its 10th anniversary — because of a lack of money. Since its inception, the program has served about 500 youths, 95 percent of them people of color.

It will also help fund things as simple as new basketballs for regular games between St. Paul police and Somali youth and activities such as hockey, fishing and soccer.

“This is all about keeping kids out of the criminal justice system,” Axtell said.

Chao Xiong • 612-270-4708

Twitter: @ChaoStrib

By CHAO XIONG , STAR TRIBUNE
May 05, 2016 - 9:22 PM

St. Paul Police Land Sizeable Bremer Grant for Community Outreach Programs

May 6, 2016/0 Comments/in PAL, Recent News, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by Melanie Gage

(Pioneer Press)

St. Paul Assistant Police Chief Todd Axtell started a summer program a decade ago to introduce kids in St. Paul to the daily work of being a police officer. On the first day, he asked the several dozen young people ice breaker questions.

“I asked: What do the police do?” Axtell recalled. “And, a little boy raises his hand excitedly, and he says, ‘shoot people.’ ”

Axtell tells the story to explain why he’s excited that the St. Paul Police Department is receiving a $500,000 two-year grant from the Otto Bremer Trust to increase community engagement. The sizable grant, which was announced Thursday, will flow through the nonprofit St. Paul Police Foundation. It’s a rare example of private dollars supporting police work and will allow the department to create new ways for officers to interact with young people as mentors, coaches and community leaders.

“Every positive contact we have with our youth is another deposit in the bank of trust,” said Axtell. “We want our young people to understand there is a person behind the uniform, and that we care about the community. We want our youth to be able to approach our officers without fear. And we want our officers to get to know our youth, so when they’re driving down the street answering a call for service, they can now put a name to the face.”

The grant comes at a time when police and community relations across the country and in the Twin Cities have been strained by high-profile police shootings of unarmed civilians, many of whom are black.

“It was a ripe opportunity,” said Daniel Reardon, one of three CEOs of the Otto Bremer Trust in St. Paul, which in 2014 gave away more than $40 million in grants. “Because of the dollar amount, they’re going to be able to reach a lot more people. You’re going to see police viewed as a resource and an asset rather than a liability.”

The money will bolster existing programs, such as the St. Paul Junior Police Academy, a one-week summer camp run with the YWCA to introduce children and teens to police work through field trips to the finger print lab and visits with the K-9 units. Over nine years, 500 young people have participated, 95 percent African American and other children of color, said Axtell.

The police department started a separate youth academy for East and West African students in 2014. The Bremer grant could be used to pay for transportation and halal meals, which until now the department had scrambled to cover through its regular budget. One of the young women involved the program was hired last year as the department’s first Somali community liaison officer.

“We need to build community wherever we can, given the tensions there have been between the African American community and the police,” said Gaye Adams Massey, who started last year as CEO at YWCA St. Paul. “And this is a great way to build relationships between young people and the officers.”

Until now, the police department has funded outreach through its budget, said Axtell. But that’s becoming harder to do with annual 15 percent increases in 911 calls and the subsequent need for additional policing, he said. One of his dreams is to use the Bremer grant to staff a community engagement team to organize and increase the various outreach programs. The police also facilitate a regular all-female swim night at the downtown YMCA to teach Somali girls and women how to swim.

And, officers work with St. Paul Public School students through the college and career preparation program AVID. Through partnerships with St. Paul Parks and Recreation and nonprofit organizations, officers take kids ice fishing and on summer bicycle rides. They hold baseball and basketball clinics. Funds could pay for buying basketballs or renting time on a soccer field for a weekly cop-coached soccer program, he said.

The department also hopes to raise an additional $250,000 through donations to the St. Paul Police Foundation, Axtell said.

Sgt. Jeff Stiff volunteered for the first time last year along with other St. Paul officers with a free weekly hockey program called Rink Rats, funded through the Herb Brooks Foundation.

“It’s something I enjoyed doing,” said Stiff, a former college hockey player. “And I think it’s an opportunity for these kids to see police officers in a different light.” He developed a friendship with a second-grader named Antonio, whose mother, April Naastad, said Stiff still texts or calls a couple times a week to see how her son is doing.

“Antonio’s dad isn’t around, so it’s basically just me raising him,” Naastad said. “He’s helped Antonio with his school work and attitude. It’s amazing. It helps me out a lot.”

Imagine someone asking Antonio: What does a police officer do? He might just answer “plays hockey.”

By MAJA BECKSTROM | [email protected]

May 5, 2016 | UPDATED: 16 hours ago

History of the Rowan Award and 2015 Nominees

September 18, 2015/0 Comments/in Blue Nite Gala, Recent News, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by saintpaulpolice

The Saint Paul Police Foundation invites the community to Blue Nite Gala on October 10, 2015 at the St. Paul RiverCentre to celebrate the 2015 Rowan Award Winner and all current and former St. Paul Police Officers.

Saint Paul, MN (September 17, 2015): Richard H. Rowan was Chief of the Saint Paul Police Department from 1970 to 1979, dedicating a total of 32 years of service to the Department. He began his career as a patrolman in 1949 and rose up through the ranks as detective, deputy chief and then chief. His tenure as Chief was marked by turbulent times in the city, during which Chief Rowan demonstrated strong and steady leadership. He has been praised as a man of integrity who displayed courage and innovation throughout his career.

In 1975, Chief Rowan established the first medal of honors program within the department. And in honor of his memory, the Rowan Award is presented annually at the Annual Saint Paul Police Foundation Gala to a Saint Paul police officer who best exemplifies the characteristics that reflect Chief Rowan’s service. The honor is awarded to an officer who, with integrity, courage and innovation, displays the finest example of police work throughout their career.

John Rowan, Chief Rowan’s son, reflected on what the award means to the Rowan Family, “The Rowan Award has really helped to keep everyone in the family connected with their father, grandfather, and uncle. This [award] has connected our family with his legacy, what he means to Saint Paul. It has kept [the family] connected to Saint Paul, even while living in a different state. Our family feels so proud when seeing the presentation of the Rowan award. My sons were young when the award was first presented in 2006 at the Gala, and now they wouldn’t want to miss the award presentation.”

This year’s Rowan Award Nominees reflect the characteristics of Chief Rowan: integrity, courage, and innovation. The 2015 Rowan Award Nominees are Jon Sherwood, Eric Skog, and Rob Zink. Learn more about the 2015 nominees below.

2015 Rowan Award Nominees

Jon Sherwood

Many officers are heralded for exemplary work on individual cases. Others achieve distinction through rank and administrative duties. Then there are those who make indelible impressions by delivering exceptional service—day-in, day out—over the entirety of their careers. For 29 years, Officer Sherwood has been a consummate professional, mentor, selfless leader, and advocate for those in the throes of the worst moments of their lives.
For much of his career, he worked in the canine unit. His leadership and commitment to excellence benefitted the community, fellow officers and the department as he volunteered to work midnight shift after midnight shift, never hesitated to rush toward danger and won accolades as the nation’s top dog handler. Since transferring out of the Canine Unit, Officer Sherwood has continued to epitomize the professionalism Saint Paul has come to expect from its officers. He currently exceeds his tour’s average in calls for service by 51 percent, arrests by 76 percent, and traffic stops by 85 percent. He has never been one to seek the spotlight, although his work has been recognized many times by both the community and the Department. Rather, his commitment to excellence stems from taking pride in patrolling the very neighborhood in which he grew up and currently lives as well as the fact that he cares deeply about the people he helps every day.

Eric Skog

Sergeant Skog has been with the Saint Paul Police Department since 1998. Throughout his career, he has been recognized for his investigatory skills, professionalism, and dedication—attributes that would serve the community and department well over the course of one of the highest-profile cases in recent history. From October 2013 through June 2015, Sergeant Skog was assigned full-time to the investigation of sexual abuse within the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. It was a complex case involving numerous allegations from victims young and old, the review of tens of thousands of documents, and unyielding attention from local, national, and international media. Everyone, it seemed, had an agenda or vendetta. He interviewed top leaders of the Archdiocese. He coordinated with the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office. He served as his unit’s executive officer and carried a case load. He worked nights, weekends, and held the case together for months. On June 5, 2015, the Archdiocese was charged by the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office with three counts of Contributing to the Need for Protection or Services.

Rob Zink

Officer Zink has served the people of Saint Paul with pride and professionalism for 17 years. He is well known in the Saint Paul Police Western District for treating everyone he meets with compassion and fairness. Recently, however, he took his commitment to service a step further by embarking on a project that is making a profound difference for those who are among the most vulnerable—people with autism. Officer Zink started the Cops Autism Response Education (CARE) program, which connects parents of children with autism with officers in an effort to improve understanding, communication, and outcomes during police contacts. He also developed training to help officers better understand the unique sensory issues people with autism have and how they often lead to noncompliance and resistance. The results are promising. Parents in the western district have a better understanding of how and why officers do their jobs. Officers better understand how flashing lights, shouted commands, and crackling radios affect people with autism. Saint Paul is a safer place for people living with the disorder. A parent of a child with autism summed up the importance of CARE in a letter written to the department, saying that Officer Zink “is the definition of what community service police/peace officers should be. He has gone above and beyond in raising awareness of neurological disabilities to educate his colleagues, as interactions have greatly improved since he entered our lives.”

Past Rowan Award Winners
2014 –Timothy Moore
2013 – Timothy McCarty
2012 – Michael Dollerschell
2011- Michael Reuvers
2010 –Kevin Moore
2009 – Randy Barnett
2008 - Gregory Pye
2007 - Frank Verdeja
2006 - Thomas Dunaski

We invite you to join us for the Tenth Annual Blue Nite Gala celebration! To learn more about buying tickets, please visit www.saintpaulpolicefoundation.com/blue-nite-gala.

St. Paul Police Foundation Presents Check to the St. Paul Police Department at Golf Tournament

June 10, 2015/0 Comments/in Golf Tournament, Holiday Lights in the Park, Recent Efforts, Recent News, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by saintpaulpolice

Check presentation to support the St. Paul Police Department and its community outreach efforts are part of annual golf tournament on June 11

Saint Paul, MN (June 10, 2014) - The St. Paul Police Foundation is proud to announce today they will present more than $17,000 to the St. Paul Police Department for additional safety equipment. The formal check presentations to SPPD Chief Tom Smith will take place at 5 p.m. on Thursday, June 11, as part of the Foundation’s annual golf tournament at Highland National Golf Course at Mancini’s Char House & Lounge in St. Paul.

Thursday’s donation includes nearly $7,000 in grants from the Foundation to the St. Paul Police Department’s Motorcycle Unit for Motoport suits that protect officers in the event of a motorcycle crash. In addition, the Foundation will present the department with more than $10,000 in funds from its Holiday Lights in the Park event which took place during the 2014 holiday season at Phalen Park. These funds will also be used to enhance safety for officers.

“We are extremely delighted to support the officers who work daily to keep our city safe,” said Kate Kelly, Executive Director of the St. Paul Police Foundation. “The hard work of our volunteers ensures that we are able to make donations of this magnitude. We look forward to doing this for many years to come.”

Kelly said plans are already in place for the 2015 edition of Holiday Lights in the Park which will run nightly from 5 to 10 p.m. between November 24, 2015 and January 1, 2016 at Phalen Park.

Since its inception in 2005, the Foundation has raised more than $2 million to help support numerous SPPD initiatives including providing life saving equipment, Shop with Cops, the Safe City Camera program, Cops and Kids program and a variety of resources for crime victims.

St. Paul Police Foundation Golf Tournament Photo Opportunity:

What: The St. Paul Police Foundation’s 3^rd Annual Golf Tournament to raise funds and awareness for the SPPD.

When: Thursday, June 11, 2015. Formal check presentation at 5 p.m.

Where: Mancini’s Char House & Lounge 531 7th St W in St. Paul.

Who: For media event and tournament questions please contact Media Liaison Robb Leer at 612.701.0608 or Jane Canney at 651-291-2820.

About Holiday Lights:

Holiday Lights in the Park is a joint venture of the St. Paul Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) and the St. Paul Police Foundation with the sole purpose of creating fun and affordable holiday events that raise funds to help meet basic life needs for children and adults in the Twin Cities metro area. All of the net proceeds of the event will be distributed to Union Gospel Mission, the Saint Paul Police Foundation, and the Saint Paul Parks Conservancy. To date, Holiday Lights in the Park has raised more than $366,000 to support local non-profit organizations that support the residents of the Twin Cities. Holiday Lights in the Park is open nightly each holiday season at Phalen Park. Visitors experience a program of more than 60 larger-than-life holiday light sculptures and animated displays from the comfort of their vehicles as they cruise through the park in the evening hours. For more information please visit our website: http://www.saintpaulpolicefoundation.com/, or you can find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stpaulpolicefoundation or follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/StPaulPoliceFdn

CONTACTS:

Robb Leer, media liaison Holiday Lights in the Park 612.701.0608 [email protected]

Jane Canney, interim executive director Saint Paul Police Foundation 651-291-2820 [email protected]

###

St. Paul Police Officers team up with YWCA to connect Cops & Kids

March 25, 2015/0 Comments/in Saint Paul Police Foundation /by saintpaulpolice

YWCA
Spring 2015

This winter, the Saint Paul Police Department (SPPD) teamed up with the YWCA on a project that rewards at-risk youth for positive behavior. As part of an ongoing effort to help cops and kids build rapport, police officers are now managing the Youth Achievers Program (YAP) Store.

The initiative aims to build positive relationships today that will help build a better tomorrow. “Many of our youth are used to encountering police only in the context of stressful situations—so this is a great opportunity for them to interact on a regular basis in a safe, positive setting,” explains Danielle Taylor, Chief Program Officer at the YWCA.

Once a week officers operate the YAP Store, where they help kids tally and redeem points they’ve earned by participating in activities, completing homework assignments and demonstrating good behavior. With a generous donation from the Saint Paul Police Foundation, the store is currently stocked with a little bit of everything including snacks, hygiene products, school supplies, toys and sporting goods. Kids have the option of spending their points as they earn them or saving up for larger items.

In addition to running the store, officers also spend time playing games, helping with school assignments and simply getting to know the youth. It’s an important mission and one the officers take seriously. As Assistant Police Chief Todd Axtell explains, “When our children have a more favorable view of our police, and our police have a more favorable view of our children, we all win.”

Our partnership with the SPPD was recently featured on WCCO. To view the segment, visit http://cbsloc.al/13UXhi4.

Article source: http://www.ywcaofstpaul.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/yw-words-2015-spring.pdf

Wet weather temporarily shuts off St. Paul lights show

December 16, 2014/0 Comments/in Holiday Lights in the Park, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by Melanie Gage

Star Tribune
December 15, 2014 - 8:27 PM

A St. Paul holiday lights show was temporarily shut down Monday night due to the unusually warm and damp weather.

The St. Paul chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), which helps sponsor the Holiday Lights in the Park display in St. Paul’s Phalen Park, told organizers in the St. Paul Police Foundation that the lights’ electrical connections could short out because of the humidity and condensation, making the event unsafe.

To keep the complicated displays illuminated, workers would continually have to help maintain the displays and could have been put in harm’s way, said Robb Leer, media liaison for the show.

It is the first time in seven seasons that Holiday Lights in the Park will go dark due to the rain.

“We’ve never been rained out before, this is a first for us,” said Kate Kelly, executive director of the St. Paul Police Foundation, in a release. “But safety comes first, and we have our fingers crossed that conditions will go back to normal so we can reopen [Tuesday night].”

Holiday Lights in the Park is open nightly from Nov. 25 through Jan. 1. The show is made up of more than 60 holiday light sculptures and animated displays that visitors can see from their vehicles as they drive through the park.

It costs visitors $10 per vehicle to experience the show. All of the net proceeds will be distributed to Union Gospel Mission, the St. Paul Police Foundation and the St. Paul Parks Conservancy. To date, the show has raised more than $336,000 to support local nonprofit organizations.

NICOLE NORFLEET

Warm, damp weather turns off Holiday Lights in the Park

December 16, 2014/0 Comments/in Holiday Lights in the Park, Saint Paul Police Foundation /by Melanie Gage

Pioneer Press
Posted: 12/15/2014 12:01:00 AM CST
Updated: 12/15/2014 05:38:57 PM CST

The Holiday Lights in the Park display at St. Paul’s Phalen Park was canceled Monday night because of the continuing unseasonable warm and damp weather.

The St. Paul Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, co-sponsors of the event with the St. Paul Police Foundation, said the humidity and condensation threatened to short out electrical connections, causing unsafe conditions.

“We’ve never been rained out before, this is a first for us,” Kate Kelly, executive director of the St. Paul Police Foundation, said in a press release. “But safety comes first and we have our fingers crossed that conditions will go back to normal so we can reopen (Tuesday) night.”

The drive-through light show is open nightly until Jan. 1. Proceeds from the 37-night event will go to the Union Gospel Mission, the St. Paul Police Foundation and the St. Paul Parks Conservancy. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to http://www.saintpaulpolicefoundation.com.