Law Enforcement Appreciation Day is right around the corner on January 9! As a police wife I know I’m a liiiiiitle bit biased, but I love any and all support our officers can get! LEAD and TAPO Day (Thank a Police Officer Day) are great days to show our men and women in blue a little extra love.
In the past I’ve made crafts, baked goodies, and bought presents to celebrate these days. You can find a bunch of free printables and recipes in this post and this post and this post from years past.
This year, I wanted to share a few ideas that weren’t just cards or gifts-but simple and free ways to show your support!
1. Simply say “thank you”. I know, it almost sounds too easy-and that’s because it is! Send a text out to the officers in your life, stick a card in the mail, or wave to the next cop you see on the road. Our officers do an often thankless job, and seeing and hearing your support probably means more to them than you could ever imagine.
2. Share a LEAD post on social media and/or share why you support our officers. In the past few years, supporting law enforcement has become a bit taboo. Isn’t that wild when you step back and think about it?! Mainstream media and politicians have made us think twice about declaring our support for our LEOs-but this LEAD I challenge you to share it anyway. Maybe your nephew is an officer-share on Facebook how proud you are of him! Maybe you’re the daughter of an officer-post about how brave and strong they are! And maybe you’re just a general supporter-find an image celebrating LEAD (like the one below-just save it to your device!) and share it with your friends!
3. Commit to supporting an organization that provides support for first responders. This could be through donations of your time and/or money, helping spread the word about their organization and mission statement, or simply by “liking” and “following” their pages! Maybe you have a heart for our fallen officers and their families, or perhaps your heart is for serving meals to first responders. Find an organization that supports the cause(s) that are near and dear to your heart and give them some love!
4. Consider where you’re spending your dollars and if their mission statement/political stance/support aligns with yours. Some companies are very vocal about supporting first responders, and some are very vocal about…not. Do some research to find out what companies might align with your beliefs, and consider giving them your business when you’re able to.
5. This one is similar to #1 and #2, but a little more personal. If you’re like me and are a police wife (or a deputy husband, or trooper significant other…) then you see firsthand how difficult blue life can be-especially in the past several years. I encourage you to pinpoint the things you love most about your officer (the way they are always calm and collected in the midst of trauma and chaos, the way they go out of their way to check in on the man who is homeless in their beat, or the way they wake up early to double check their reports before shift) and intentionally and specifically share those things with them. Sit them down and tell them why you think they’re such a good cop. Hold their hand and look into their eyes and share the things you’ve seen them do that make them such an incredible LEO. You’re their number one fan and biggest supporter-so take LEAD as a way to vocalize that even more than usual.
I hope these ideas are helpful! Whatever way you decide to show our officers support this Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, thank you for being a supporter!