L.E.A.D.

I torsdags havde jeg fået en fantastisk mulighed for at komme lidt nærmere på hvad der sker lokalt i Valdosta og Lowndes county (kommune). På grund af et afbud, blev det nemlig muligt for mig at deltage i den årlige L.E.A.D. dinner som er arrangeret af Valdosta Rotary klub. 

L.E.A.D. står for Law Enforcement Appreciation Dinner, og hovedformålet er at samle penge ind til familier med direkte forbindelse til politiet her i området, som kan komme ud for at have et akut og ekstraordinært behov for finansiel hjælp. 

Billetprisen var 100$ pr. person, hvilket muligvis vil skræmme mange væk i første omgang, men det lod ikke til at have skræmt nogen væk - hele 500 personer deltog i arrangementet, hvilket må siges at være rimeligt imponerende.

Udover at samle penge ind, blev arrangementet også brugt til at hylde en politibetjent fra hver enkelt afdeling som indsamlingen går til: Lowndes County Sheriff's Office, Valdosta Police Department, og Georgia State Patrol.

Aftenen gav et virkelig godt indblik i hvad der ellers foregår her i Valdosta. Til tider kan det nemlig godt virke lidt som om campus er sin egen lille "by i byen".

Jeg ville gerne have kunnet vise et billede af de tre betjente som blev hyldet, men havde desværre ikke mulighed for selv at tage et billede, og det ser ikke ud til at være kommet på nettet fra de lokale medier endnu. 

::::

Thursday I had an amazing opportunity to get a little bit closer to what is happening locally in the Valdosta and Lowndes county community. Because of a last minute cancellation it became possible for me to attend the annual L.E.A.D. dinner put together by the Valdosta Rotary Club.

I'm not entirely sure how common the LEAD acronym is outside the Lowndes community, but it stands for Law Enforcement Appreciation Dinner, and the main purpose of the event is to raise money for families with a direct relation to the local law enforcement, who at some point has an immediate and extraordinary need for financial aid. 

The ticket price was 100$ pr. person, which you might think could scare away some participants, but it didn't seem to have scared anyone away - more than 500 people participated in the event, which I must admit was very impressive!

Besides raising money, the event was also used to award a police officer from each department taking part in LEAD: Lowndes County Sheriff's Office, Valdosta Police Department, and Georgia State Patrol.

The night gave me great insight to what else is going on in the community. At times it can seem kind of isolated here at campus where it is almost as if it is a "town within the town". 

I really wanted to be able to share a picture of the three officers who were awarded on the evening, but I wasn't able to take a picture myself, and it doesn't look like the local media has put it online yet.