Excited to read

It’s a collaboration that made sense.

Berlin police officers have often read at borough schools. So when staffers at the Marie Fleche Memorial Library first asked Lt. Joshua Smith about visiting – possibly with his K-9 Clyde – it was a no brainer.

“I coordinated with their staff and officer (Steve) Palma … as well as Community Relations Officer (Dominic) Hodson,” Smith explained.

The Books and Badges Story Hour was born.

“This is our first time collaborating with the library for this new event,” Smith noted. “We have attended some prior events, but this is the first under Books and Badges.”

The story hour will be held from noon to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 2. All ages are welcome. The featured story is “Officer Buckle and Gloria,” by Peggy Rathmann, a funny picture book published in 1995. Gloria is Buckle’s police dog Gloria.

Buckle knows more about safety than anyone in the town of Napville. But whenever he tries to share his safety tips, nobody listens. Until, that is, the Napville police department gets Gloria, according to a description of the book. Unbeknownst to Buckle, Gloria has her own way of demonstrating safety tips, one that makes Napville sit up and take notice.

“Suddenly, everyone wants to hear officer Buckle’s safety speech,” the book reads. “And please,” people say, “Bring along that police dog.”

One Buckle discovers he’s been upstaged, he vows to give up safety tips once and for all. So can Gloria convince her friend to return to the job he loves, or is Napville about to have its worst accident ever?

“For the event I asked library staff to find a book in house they felt would fit the reader, a police officer and the event at hand,” Smith pointed out. “They did a great job at that …”

Before borough officers read at the schools, Smith often asks teachers to pick the books they think their students would want to hear.

“This allows us to foster a connection between the book the (students) may already love and creates communication,” he said.

The Books and Badges event is being held ahead of National Police Week next month. Every May, the nation comes together to honor law-enforcement officers. Originally established through a presidential proclamation by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, National Police Week includes Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15 and a week of observances recognizing officers who given their lives in the line of duty and current officers, according to National Police Week’s website.

“We will be at our schools the week of May 18,” Smith promised. “We do multiple days of demonstrations from various units. We’ve been doing this for many years.”

Registration for Books and Badges is required by phone at (856) 767-2448, ext. 1. For more information, visit www.berlinborolibrary.org.