Easing the Back-to-School Blues for Local Boys and Girls Pasadena Boys and Girls Club members treated to “Shop with a Cop” event at Target

Back to school can be an economic challenge for local families, but it offers the perfect opportunity for the Pasadena Police Department, the Pasadena Rotary Club, and the Pasadena Boys and Girls Clubs, to team up with 20 Pasadena boys and girls for the annual back to school “Shop with a Cop” at the Target store in East Pasadena. 

The “Shop With a Cop” program is an initiative by the Rotary Club of Pasadena that aims to create a positive environment where youths are partnered with a police officer for an afternoon of shopping, fostering a bond between them.

According to Rotary Club of Pasadena President Justene Adamec, the program was started in 2015 by then-Rotary Club president Kathy Meagher, who came up with the idea of using grant money for back-to-school shopping. The program began with 20 kids in 2015.

“We are so excited about doing this event again,” said Pasadena Boys and Girls Club CEO Lisa Cavelier, who added, “It allows us to partner with the kids in the community. They get $100 and get to pick out things they need to go back to school with, and something fun as well”  

Participants are chosen by the branch managers at the two Boys and Club properties on the basis of need as well as previous participation in similar events, said Cavelier. 

Each child was partnered with a Pasadena Police officer, given a $100 gift card provided by the Rotary Club, and allowed to roam the store and buy whatever they wished.

“This is the one event that our police officers wait for every year,” said Susan Porras, Pasadena Police Department program coordinator. “They really enjoy spending the time with the kids, and we really just want the kids to have a good time.”

Most of the young students, after being handed a $100 gift card, headed straight for school clothes and supplies, but one student, clutching a fistful of pencils and notebooks, revealed that he was “saving $40 for video games.”

Natalia Macias, a student at Marshall Fundamental was looking for gifts for friends and family members, saying modestly, “This doesn’t have to be about just me.”

Rotary Club President Adamec said she had applied for a Rotary grant this year to pay for the event and hopes to be able to host a similar event for the holidays in December.

The “Shop With a Cop” program is an initiative by the Rotary Club of Pasadena that aims to create a positive environment where each young person is partnered with a police officer for an afternoon of shopping, fostering a bond between them.

The program has been conducted twice each year for more than five years, benefiting members of the Boys & Girls Club. The program helps Pasadena students return to school happier and more prepared.

The Rotary Club of Pasadena is part of Rotary International, a global organization founded by Paul Harris in 1905 with the goal of bringing together professionals with diverse backgrounds to exchange ideas and form meaningful, lifelong friendships4

Over time, Rotary’s vision has extended to humanitarian service, with members working to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems.