By Deborah Lynn Blumberg

First encounters with law enforcement often aren’t the happiest of affairs. A resident might get pulled over for speeding, or maybe they call the police for help after a car accident or an assault. At the same time, overall trust in the police has weakened in recent years. A 2022 Gallup poll found that only 45% of U.S. adults surveyed said they felt confident in law enforcement.

Key to building trust between the police and residents are positive encounters. One recent study showed a single positive, nonenforcement interaction with an officer can significantly improve a person’s perception of the police and their willingness to then cooperate in the community. Over the last few years, the City of Owatonna’s Police Department has taken a proactive approach to the resident-officer relationship by creating and fostering a variety of outreach programs and opportunities to forge close ties between its community members and police.

Owatonna won a 2024 LMC City of Excellence Award for its latest program addition, Coptober, a now annual one-day event where students in grades five and under interact with law enforcement while participating in officer-led activities like fingerprinting, learning how evidence is processed at a crime scene, and experiencing the latest tools and technology used by the department.

“Unfortunately, police have to have more negative interactions,” said Kris Busse, Owatonna’s city administrator. “Events like Coptober enhance awareness of community programs and humanize the officers. Residents get to know them and recognize them, so that then when they see them in the community they stop and say hello.”

From the seed of an idea to making it Owatonna’s own

Owatonna Police Chief Jeff Mundale had the idea to start Coptober after attending a specialized training at the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia three years ago. He read an article about another city’s community engagement program called Coptober in a mailing he received after the training.

Mundale thought the name was catchy.

“In Owatonna, the police department participates and engages in our community quite heavily,” said Mundale, who’s been in law enforcement for some 29 years, “and this was another way to engage people.”

He brought the name and the general idea back home to Owatonna, where a group of police officers and city staff sat down together to brainstorm police-related activities that would interest and engage local children. They also created an event logo.

“The chief let us run with it,” said Owatonna Police Captain Joshua D. Sorensen, who was part of the initial planning team. “We developed it, and we made it our own. Having positive interactions makes my job easier, and it is a good way to humanize us.”

To get maximum participation, the group decided to hold the three-hour event from 9 a.m. until noon on the third Thursday of October each year, which coincides with MEA Break; during this break schools are closed so Minnesota public educators can attend a training conference.

Police and city administrators also chose to partner with the Owatonna Public Library on the event as a way to spark interest in reading and books, as well. Public libraries often have a positive association as a safe and happy place for many people. The event was held at the library, and Childrens’ Librarian Darla Lager read police-themed books to attendees during story time and led youth through police-themed games.

Through hands-on activities and one-on-one conversations, kids bond with officers

To advertise the event in its first year, the city printed brochures that were mailed to residents’ homes, and it pushed out messages on the city’s social media accounts. The local school district also helped to spread the word to families.

In its first year in 2022, Coptober drew 147 local youth who learned how to process evidence from a crime scene, saw how shoeprints were cast, dressed up in police uniforms and took photos, and had their fingerprints taken.

Children interacted with more than a dozen officers — of the department’s 36 — including detectives, K9 officers, and the SWAT team. They also had a chance to look inside squad cars and get an up-close view of the departments’ e-bikes, which officers explained let them more easily navigate locations where police cars can’t go. The bikes are especially useful during large community events.

One officer piloted a tactical drone to show kids how the device works and explained how drones keep officers safe by exploring buildings before the police go in. Kids also saw equipment like Stop Sticks, a tool police use to pop tires during a pursuit or keep a car stationary after a police officer has stopped the vehicle.

After filling out a booklet while visiting each activity station at the event, participating children received “evidence bag” gift bags that were filled with prizes like stickers, candy, and fruit snacks.

“It’s always fun when you get to interact with kids, and they ask such interesting questions,” Busse said. “It’s a positive, uplifting experience.”

A growing program that stimulates both kids and adults

In 2023, the city budgeted $1,500 for Coptober and it also received a $750 grant to go toward the program from the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association.

Funds from the grant paid for glow sticks and lanyards that officers gave to kids who attended Coptober to use while they trick-or-treated that Halloween, as well as crayons and police-themed books. Children at Coptober participated in a coloring contest, too — the prizes were pumpkins grown by Sorensen’s parents.

“We also have grandparents that show up filling in as caregivers who say, ‘this is so fun, and I learned something new today,’” Mundale said.

Around the same number of youths attended Coptober last year. This year, the city is hoping to increase that number. In addition to helping to foster community and police relations, city staff and the Owatonna Police Department also see Coptober as a potential recruitment and retention tool.

“Right now, law enforcement across the country does struggle to get good candidates through the door,” Sorensen said, “and if we can catch them when they are younger, maybe we’ll be able to keep their interest.”

Adds Busse, “Coptober is hopefully even encouraging that next generation to consider law enforcement.”

Coptober complements a variety of programs designed to foster close connections between Owatonna officers and residents

For 2024, Owatonna designed and produced refrigerator magnets with the Coptober logo on it to hand out to advertise the now annual event. Instead of specifying a year, the magnets cite the third Thursday of October, or MEA break, making it a timeless marketing tool. Coptober in 2024 will be held on Oct. 17.

The Coptober program complements a series of events Owatonna has developed to forge close relationships between its law enforcement and residents. It’s not uncommon for officers to drop by kids’ lemonade stands when they’re out and about or toss a football with neighborhood kids for a few minutes as they’re driving around.

“Our police department does enjoy a lot of community support,” Busse said, “and it is due in large part to these positive interactions that we have with our residents. We’re always looking for opportunities to have that positive contact and interaction with both kids and adults in our community.”

During Owatonna’s “Shop with a Cop” program each December, officers pair with youth from low-income families to shop for holiday gifts for their family members. In the past, companies like Target have donated money to the program. The officer and youth duo then spend time in the store together choosing gifts for parents or siblings.

Steele County also holds the two-day Steele County Kids Safety Camp for third graders who live in Steele County.

Owatonna is the host community for the camp. Some 200 children learn safety tips around boating, fishing, fire, and the internet from local firefighters, police officers, emergency medical service workers, and other first responders. A highlight of the summer program is the last day when participants watch an Apache helicopter land nearby. Owatonna runs a Police Explorers program too — one for youth ages 14 to 17, and another for adults from 18 to 20 — which gives hands-on experience in the basic skills that people need to work in law enforcement. The Owatonna Police Department has hired from the program in the past.

“Now, more than ever, it’s an important time to continue to build that trust with our citizens,” Mundale said, “and for them to see us as human beings, as parents, as brothers, as sisters. Even if we touch just a few new lives and we build just a few new connections and relationships, that is a bonus for us.”

Deborah Lynn Blumberg is a freelance writer.