Petersburg schoolkids 'Shop With A Hero' at Walmart in Colonial Heights
COLONIAL HEIGHTS — Veronica Thompson stood and watched as the children with her, a 10-year-old and a 5-year-old, buzzed up and down one of the aisles in the Walmart toy department. As each picked something out and brought it to their cart, she asked them if they noted how much the items cost.
"You gotta check the prices," Thompson told Marquise Thompson and Terion Couch. Marquise, the older of the two, took note. The younger one did not. Thompson said he was too little to comprehend costs.
"This one is all about grabbing [the toy] and putting it in the cart," she said.
Several children who attend Petersburg public schools brought their families and friends to Walmart as part of the "Shop With A Hero" program, where Colonial Heights' first-responders were paired with kids to venture into the store and get as many gifts as the $250 gift card they had in their hands would cover. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of those carts made beelines to the toy department.
Keyana Manson of Petersburg brought her 8-year-old goddaughter, Sorea Clanton. It was the first time either had ever participated in a buddy-shopping program.
"I think it's wonderful," said Manson, a store manager in Petersburg. She said she had just thrown a Christmas party for her staff that morning, then braved the rainy conditions to bring Sorea over to Walmart.
Sorea, apparently a child of few words, gave a thumbs-up when she was asked what she thought about her shopping adventure.
One of her fellow Pleasants Lane Elementary School students also economized his words when asked what he was looking to buy in the store.
"Toys," 7-year-old Chase Coles said. Chase was there with his dad, Alonzo Bynum.
"With inflation and all happening, this really helps out," Bynum said as Chase perused a shelf of Nerf toys.
Andrew Fontaine, a senior police officer, was participating in his first Colonial Heights shopping spree. He's no stranger to the concept, however, as he said he took part in several of these events when he was a cop in Petersburg for five years.
"It's one of my favorite times," Fontaine said. Having a young daughter of his own, he tried to offer some suggestions to Manson and Sorea, with whom he was partnered.
"She's probably a little too old for 'Bluey,' isn't she?" Fontaine asked Manson while Sorea searched for the perfect doll. "My daughter is four and she loves it."
The Shop With A Hero program was made possible through donations from Peoples Advantage Credit Union in Petersburg, American Legion Post 284 in Colonial Heights, the nonprofit group Move America, and G&T Body Shop in Petersburg, as well as several privately collected donations. Chris Hamilton, who orgaized the event, said he was able to raise $2,800, and that translated into 10 $250 gift cards and three $100 gift cards. The children were given the $250 cards, while Hamilton and Quan Muhammad of Move America said they planned to give the three $100 cards to random customers in the store.
Three of the $250 gift cards went to children whose family recently lost everything they had in a house fire, Hamilton said.
Muhammad said the Colonial Heights event Thursday was only the beginning for the Shop With A Hero program.
"We're gonna take over the whole Tri-City area next year," he said. "We may even get them to close down a Walmart for the day so we can bring the kids shopping."
Added Hamilton, "Or at least close off the toy departments."
Similar shopping programs involving children and law-enforcement officers were held this week in Dinwiddie and Petersburg.
Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Colonial Heights first-responders shop with kids for Christmas gifts
