On March 15, 2003 I was sent on my first deployment to the Middle East to what was considered a bare base. For those unfamiliar with military terms that just desert and a cot with no amenities. I can tell you from experience this was a difficult time for my family because my only daughter was 5 and we were inseparable. Once we landed at our undisclosed location and began to settle in, I realized just how serious the events that occurred on 9/11/2001 were and how they will continue to affect many. When I deployed I had only been employed at KCPD for approximately 5 years and felt like I had settled into my routine of patrolling within East Patrol Division. I had many coworkers that I considered true friends and sometimes wondered what I would miss from patrol while deployed. I actually didn’t know how long I was going to be deployed but my official military orders were for a minimum of 1 year. During my deployment I had my good and bad days but overall being away from family and coworkers were the most difficult. While being deployed I received several surprise care packages from the KCPD CARE Team. These boxes typically arrived on the bad days and were filled with letters from fellow officers children and many types of KCPD swag. These items were needed and definitely uplifted my spirits during the deployment. The KCPD CARE Team also sent officers by my home to mow weekly while I was away which took much worry and stress away from my wife who needed to tend to our daughter. My mission when I returned to was to determine who was behind coordinating these care packages and I learned that Civilian Pam Bear who was assigned to North Patrol Division at the time was the coordinator. I personally went by North Patrol Division to meet Pam to let her know just how much those packages meant while I was away and to personally thank her. She greeted me with a smile and big hug as she still does today. I will say Civilian Pam Bear and the KCPD CARE Team does care about their members while here and away. They don’t just assist officers in need financially but they do an amazing job reaching out to deployed officers while away. Detective Von Burns
I had two family members pass away simultaneously in the same week which required my family and I to travel to different parts of the country to attend funeral services and attend to family business that comes with the passing of a loved one. I was humbled and thankful when approached by a representative from the CARE Team that informed me my family's travel expenses would be handled by the CARE Team. I have never forgotten the generosity bestowed upon me and my family by the KCPD CARE Team and the comfort it brought me and my family knowing we would not have to endure the expenses incurred during this tragic and stressful time in our lives. Retiree James Keller
For the final years of my wife's live, she battled a rare form of cancer. Along with fighting cancer comes many expenses. The CARE Team helped my family and I through some of our financial burdens and i don't know how I would have made it through a lot of the struggles without them. They are not there to be a "hand out" but to help people keep moving along. They are not only there to help out financially, but in any way they can for all types of crisis or emergencies. The word "CARE" in CARE Team is so appropriate, because they all truly do care about helping all members of the Police Department. The members of the CARE Team are a wonderful group of people whose goal is simply to help others out in a time of need. We are all very fortunate to have them in our corner! ~ Joe Malena
