It was about 1 o’clock in the morning, and
we had just finished up a call for service. I
was doing a ride-a-long with a police
officer. The call load had died down, and it
was now time to get caught up on the
paperwork from the busy shift. I joked with
my officer that he didn’t need me as a
chaplain in his car, what he needed was a
secretary. The calls we were on that night
required quite a bit of documentation. We
pulled into a dimly lit church parking lot,
and the officer began writing at his desk – a
clipboard and steering wheel. As I sat next
to him thinking about what it looks like for
me as a chaplain to support this officer, I
wandered why we were sitting in the
parking lot of this church instead of going
in. The Safe Stop program began to take
shape.
Safe Stops are essentially a substation for
officers located in a church. The Safe Stop
is a non-contact office that is away from the
public’s eye. The Safe Stop is a place that
officers can grab a cup of coffee, cold
drink, snack, and write a report if needed.
Officers have to continually be vigilant of
their surroundings, and the Safe Stop is
often the only place of peace and rest in an
officer’s busy day.
This idea was born from recognizing a
need, and meeting that need. Our vision as
chaplains is to “serve those who serve us”. I
think this applies to us as the church as well.
The Safe Stop program is currently in two
Rocky Mountain Synod churches and
growing. I believe the program has been
successful because we as the church came
along side our law enforcement community
and accompanied them in their journey.
Augustine challenged us with “it is solved
by walking”. Accompaniment gives life
when we justly walk the journey with others.
Scott Moore serves as the Lead Chaplain at the Wheat Ridge Police Department and serves as the Director of Mission, Youth and Family Ministries at a RMS congregation. He has served his congregation for 19 years and the police department for 2 years.
Search Tags: Church in the Community
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| Scott, along with his pastor and congregational
president, receives an award for their service to the community. |
Scott Moore serves as the Lead Chaplain at the Wheat Ridge Police Department and serves as the Director of Mission, Youth and Family Ministries at a RMS congregation. He has served his congregation for 19 years and the police department for 2 years.
Search Tags: Church in the Community
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