The Cascade County Detention Center is adopting five families this holiday season to help the community in a unique way.
“I was always raised that Christmas is about giving, so this is our way of giving back to the community,” said Corporal Andy Anderson, a detention officer for Cascade County.
“We’re also making it a little bit easier on families because we get a wish list for clothes that they would like, what color, what kind of toys they like, different things along those lines. So we go based on that list and we go out and purchase those items [and] when we go and deliver them to the family, they're getting something that they actually need,” said Corporal Anderson.
With the help of other organizations, such as the Great Falls Public School District, they will select five families who would benefit from this cause.
The detention center began this program in 2020 to support families who were struggling during the Covid pandemic, but since then have continued this effort to serve the community.
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“There's a lot of entities out there, you know, like Toys For Tots and the Angel Tree, and then the GFPD also does their ‘Shop With a Cop,’ but we're the silent first responders. We're behind the walls; no one ever really gets to see us, unless for unfortunate reasons they have to come up to jail, and we want to show that we care about our community as well,” Corporal Anderson explained.
With whatever money they have left over after the holidays, the detention center will set it aside to serve the community later on if needed.
The officers will be selling discount cards for $10 each. If you purchase one of the cards, you can use it throughout the entirety of next year to receive discounts at each of the participating Great Falls businesses.
“We know that there's families out there that are facing difficult times; and sometimes we're looked upon as maybe in a negative light, and we want to show a positive light that we're giving back to the community, that we care, and that we're not just jailers,” Corporal Anderson added.
Several of the detention officers will be selling discount cards on Sunday, October 27th, outside the Albertsons on 10th Avenue South from 9am to 4pm.
For further updates on where to purchase a discount card, or to donate to the cause, click here.
