Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Seeing all sorts of items on tables and in boxes is sort of a Utah weekend tradition. There were plenty of them outside the Ogden federal building on Saturday.
But Tony Cole, who lives in Sunset, didn’t come looking for yard sale bargains. He, and everyone else at the sale, were looking to help those officers who were shot in Ogden last month.
"They give their lives every day,” Cole said. “It just seems right to come down and support these people and their families."
The event was a fundraiser put on by the Northern Utah Community Support Group.
“People can pull up and give a donation or they can bring gifts and we will split them between the families,” said Janet Thorsted, a volunteer with the group. There was also a place where you could write a letter to the officers.
Related:
Community support group born out of Ogden tragedy
he shooting of six police officers in Ogden brought on a stream of community support. One group is even working to form a nonprofit charity as a result.One note, from a boy named Dallas, read “Thanks for the work you've done.”
Those little messages from the public go a long way for the officers.
"They're just always concerned about how the officers are doing," said Linda Panunzio, the mother in-law of Kasey Burrell — one of the officers shot during a drug raid last month.
“Just the outpouring of love and support from this community," said Panunzio. "It's been drawn closer together and its touched our hearts and we're just very grateful."
Homemade bracelets seemed to be the hit of the fundraiser. Two volunteers made 250 of them.
"I probably spent a week getting the cord, cutting it, and putting it all together," said volunteer Tracy Wiedmeier. “But it’s all worth it.”
"It's just too bad that something like this happened," volunteer Geri Kopinski said. "It shouldn't have."
You just can't imagine the giving that people have in their hearts. It's just awesome. I can't even begin to tell you how it's been.
–- Geri Panunzio
All the money will be split evenly among the officers families. Donated items will be sorted accorded to what each family needs, for example, one family might need diapers while another doesn't.
"You just can't imagine the giving that people have in their hearts," said Panunzio. "It's just awesome. I can't even begin to tell you how it's been.”
All of the officers who were in the hospital have been released and are recovering at home. Roy officer Jason Vanderwarf is scheduled to return to work on Monday.
The group is planning on more fundraisers in the future. To see what events are ahead, you can go to their Northern Utah Community Support Group Facebook page.
