A reserve police officer in Sheridan just started a collection campaign to support children in his town and others across the state.
He's collecting stuffed animals, to be used on patrol, to help kids in traumatic situations.
Anthony Guzman became a police officer to help others and he has a soft spot for children.
"I just love kids," Guzman said. "I've always enjoyed working with kids."
That's why he stores a little something in his patrol car just for the little ones, just for those situations that can be especially scary for a child.
"As police officers, we carry stuffed animals in cars for times like that, whether it's a vehicle accident or we get called to a domestic where there's a kid involved," Guzman explained. "We want them to know that we're here to help. We want them to feel better. We want them to feel like they're protected and what better way to do that than give them a gift?"
But for small police departments like Sheridan, the stock of stuffed animals isn't very big.
So Officer Guzman thought bigger and made a request on Facebook.
"And as soon as I posted it, I got 30-40 people in my inbox, people texting me that I haven't talked to in forever that wanted to help," Guzman said.
He's calling the collection of stuffed animals "Comfort For Kids" and he's using the hashtag #comfort4kidsIndy.
The plan is to distribute the donations to officers in small police departments all across the state. He's already heard from not only parents, but also children, who are excited to give up their own toys.
"That's something that I absolutely love seeing - other kids who are never going to meet these kids that still want to help and they know that their toys are going to go somewhere good," Guzman said.
They'll be going to a child in times of trauma, from an officer with a heart.
If you'd to help, Reserve Officer Guzman has created an email account - comfort4kidsIndy@gmail.com - to contact him about facilitating donations.
He hopes to distribute the stuffed animals to police departments well beyond Sheridan.
