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Kids' Corner: CWA Cops Put Kids First
Watch any cop show on TV and you'll see crime scene technicians dusting door handles and coffee cups and no end of other items for fingerprints, one of the ultimate clues when it comes to solving a case.
CWA's members include more than 16,000 public safety officers. They know that fingerprints aren't just important for catching the bad guys. Sometimes fingerprints can help them find a person who's lost or missing.
That's why a group of CWA's police officers from Tucson, Ariz., regularly volunteer their free time and computer equipment to help ensure the safety of thousands of children by providing fingerprint cards that their families can tuck away in case of an emergency.
The officers have run the free program in Tucson for five years. This spring they packed up their special computers and printers - purchased by their union local - and brought them to Washington, D.C., during CWA's Legislative-Political Conference.
The officers, from Tucson and other parts of the country, came to the conference to talk to members of Congress about important issues, including the need for money to help police train to protect their communities against terrorism.
But for a few hours March 30, they cleared their schedule so they could visit a local elementary school and make fingerprint cards, free of charge, for about 400 students. In past years, a private company has created the cards for students for $6 each. Some families couldn't afford it.
On the day that CWA visited, the students at Amidon School were all smiles and giggles as they waited in line for their turn to have their fingerprints and pictures taken. Unlike what you may see on TV, the equipment the CWA officers use is high-tech. They don't have to roll anyone's fingers in ink. It's all done by computer.
"The kids have been great. They're excited to see their fingerprints," said Rich Anemone, who is the president of CWA's National Coalition of Public Safety Officers and helped launch the fingerprint program in Tucson. He and his fellow officers showed the students how the equipment worked, answered their questions and asked a few of their own, such as what the kids knew about "stranger danger." They were pleased to find out that the Amidon students had the right answers.
The officers made just one copy of each fingerprint card and gave it to the student. There are no records. Nothing is kept in a database, so no police officers, school or government officials or anyone else has access to the children's fingerprints.
CWA Secretary-Treasurer Barbara Easterling visited the school while the police officers were there and shared laughs and hugs with lots of students. "I'm very proud that our police officers have taken time out to come and do this," she said. "This is a very important program and it goes to the heart of CWA's mission as a community-minded union."
Parents: To find out about children's fingerprinting programs in your area, contact your local police department.
CWA's members include more than 16,000 public safety officers. They know that fingerprints aren't just important for catching the bad guys. Sometimes fingerprints can help them find a person who's lost or missing.
That's why a group of CWA's police officers from Tucson, Ariz., regularly volunteer their free time and computer equipment to help ensure the safety of thousands of children by providing fingerprint cards that their families can tuck away in case of an emergency.
The officers have run the free program in Tucson for five years. This spring they packed up their special computers and printers - purchased by their union local - and brought them to Washington, D.C., during CWA's Legislative-Political Conference.
The officers, from Tucson and other parts of the country, came to the conference to talk to members of Congress about important issues, including the need for money to help police train to protect their communities against terrorism.
But for a few hours March 30, they cleared their schedule so they could visit a local elementary school and make fingerprint cards, free of charge, for about 400 students. In past years, a private company has created the cards for students for $6 each. Some families couldn't afford it.
On the day that CWA visited, the students at Amidon School were all smiles and giggles as they waited in line for their turn to have their fingerprints and pictures taken. Unlike what you may see on TV, the equipment the CWA officers use is high-tech. They don't have to roll anyone's fingers in ink. It's all done by computer.
"The kids have been great. They're excited to see their fingerprints," said Rich Anemone, who is the president of CWA's National Coalition of Public Safety Officers and helped launch the fingerprint program in Tucson. He and his fellow officers showed the students how the equipment worked, answered their questions and asked a few of their own, such as what the kids knew about "stranger danger." They were pleased to find out that the Amidon students had the right answers.
The officers made just one copy of each fingerprint card and gave it to the student. There are no records. Nothing is kept in a database, so no police officers, school or government officials or anyone else has access to the children's fingerprints.
CWA Secretary-Treasurer Barbara Easterling visited the school while the police officers were there and shared laughs and hugs with lots of students. "I'm very proud that our police officers have taken time out to come and do this," she said. "This is a very important program and it goes to the heart of CWA's mission as a community-minded union."
Parents: To find out about children's fingerprinting programs in your area, contact your local police department.