Do what you love.....

This year has been a discombobulated year for AHOP. 

It has increasingly gotten harder for the officers to come to my home for Saturday breakfast. They are busy from the get-go and their territory is huge, and my own work schedule doesn't offer me the flexibility any more to host weekday dinners. As much as I miss them sitting at my table, we have found it easier if I take dinner to them, and more officers get to enjoy it that way too.  

To say it hasn't made me sad to not hear the chatter and laughter at my table and to see the officer's sweet faces as they walk through my front door would be an understatement. But nothing THIS wonderful lasts forever, right?  Or does it?

"When we lose one blessing, another is often most

unexpectedly given in its place.”  ~ C. S. Lewis

In June of this year, I became an official CMPD volunteer. I knew my own division couldn't use me since I work during the day and have a part-time job, but I figured something would come along (eventually) and it would be a perfect fit. I knew it had to be something special to fill my sadness from losing my breakfast bunch.  

In July, I made a midnight cream puff drop to Charlotte's unsung heroes -- the 911 call-takers and dispatchers. I met a supervisor that night whom I hadn't met before and I told her that I was a new volunteer without a project. She told me about the police gift shop which is located at the CMPD headquarters. She said the shop was always closed during 3rd shift. 

Enter blessing #2.....

The next day I emailed the officer who oversees the volunteers and I told her I was interested in volunteering in the gift shop for 3rd shift. I think she must have read my email and thought I was a little nuts, after all, 3rd shift IS in the middle of the night. 

So, after a brief interview with one of the Sergeants, I got the job! A volunteer job, that is. Of course, some training was involved, so I took a few vacation days and trained with Miss Judy, another volunteer. I love her! She was so kind and patient.

And here's the best part....the gift shop has allowed me to expand AHOP's hospitality to even more officers. 

Halloween treat table

I set up a little treat table in the break room outside the gift shop with hot coffee, cream puffs and whatever else I decide to make. Not only have my treats been well-received, it has made me realize how neglected 3^rd shift is. They are hard at work while most of the Queen City is asleep. When I refer to 3rd shift, it is not only the officers, but also the 911 call-takers and dispatchers. It makes me so happy to offer them a snack while they take a break. 

I guess you could say 'AHOP has her groove back!' It has been a long sad year, but my joy is back. The busyness, the planning....all of it! 

So the moral of the story is, if you're doing something you love and there's a bump in the road.....stop and regroup. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and figure it out!! We have to create our own happiness in this life.    

Will I ever see my officers at my table again? I hope so. The AHOP neon sign is still in the window and I miss lighting it up from time-to-time. 

But the truth is, I really don't know. But that's what makes life so grand. Something wonderful has been replaced by something wonderful, and I get to continue to do what I love....showing my friends in blue how much they are loved and appreciated -- one division and one officer at a time.     

♥

   

The Gift Shop is Open!!

Fall treat table

Christmas treat table - 12/7/13

Another Christmas treat table (12/14/13) -- see video below

The last Christmas treat table for 2013 - December 21, 2013

This last picture above, I cheated and had to stop by Krispy Creme donuts -- just too much to do.  But isn't it the cutest!!  

I took this quick video of one of my holiday treat tables so
you could see the blinking lights. Cute, huh?

For more information about the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Benevolent Fund Gift Shop, click here.