REGINA — The Cornwall Centre buzzed with laughter and bright eyes as the Regina Police Service hosted its annual Cops + Kids shopping event, pairing officers with selected children for an afternoon of gifts, food and mentorship. What looks like a simple shopping trip is built on something deeper: relationship-building between police and youth, community partners and schools working to put positive moments into young lives.
Participants were escorted through stores, picked out presents and shared lunch together. The conversations and small moments mattered as much as the gifts. The program brings officers out of routine patrol and into genuine one-on-one time with kids who earned their spot through school programs and community nominations. That direct contact, shopping side-by-side and talking freely, breaks down barriers and replaces suspicion with connection.
Cops + Kids is part of a broader national effort to use shared activities to build trust between police and young people. Locally, the Regina Police Service partners with community groups to make sure the day reaches children who benefit most: students showing grit at school, kids facing hardship, and young people who can use a boost of encouragement and steady role modelling. Officers volunteer their time, and local businesses and community supporters help make the day possible.
For officers, the payoff is clear. This is policing through presence, low pressure and high impact. For kids, it is a memory and a message that adults in authority can be allies. For the community, it is proof that simple gestures, from hot chocolate to a helping hand in a store aisle, can shape how a neighbourhood thinks about safety, trust and opportunity.
Watch our quick highlight video to see the best moments from the day: the shopping, the smiles and the small interactions that create real change.
