A cuppa joe with a cop

Tiffin and Fostoria police departments took time Thursday morning to sit down with residents and talk with them over coffee. The departments hosted "Coffee with a Cop" at McDonalds, 1714 W. Market St., where dozens of citizens came to talk about national and local issues, as well as thank officers for their service. The event had no planned speeches or agenda, but simply was a chance for the community to get to know officers, said Tiffin Police Chief Fred Stevens. Although the event was in Tiffin, Fostoria Police Department Chief Keith Loreno and Capt. Dan Dell came to visit. "Our agencies work on a lot of different things together, so we thought we'd come over," Loreno said. Among those who came to greet officers were Patricia and Gene Sherer, of Tiffin, who talked with Stevens about how police profile actions of suspected criminals and the car break-ins reported Wednesday morning. Patricia said she was most looking forward to simply thanking the officers for their work. "I came out to say thank you. We want to support them and ask, 'What can we do?'" she said. "They were very gracious, very informative. They appreciate the citizens of Tiffin who stand by them." The police department has had small meetings with the public before, but nothing of this scale, Stevens said. The department originally was approached by the Humbard family, owners of the local McDonald franchise, to have coffee with the public. "We jumped at the opportunity to meet with the community in an unscripted way," Stevens said. "Actions always speak louder than words. Our website may say we do community policing, but what do we do?" One of the most fulfilling discussions Stevens said he had was about the national issue of officers' use of force and how Tiffin officers tackle it. To prevent unnecessary use of force, Stevens said all officers are Crisis Intervention Team-trained and follow a core value system known as FIRST, which stands for fairness, integrity, respect, service and team. "With all the stuff going on nationally, we want to be ahead of the curve. … We're not just a bunch of people out there who are unprofessional, untrained," Stevens said. "I guarantee you can talk to any of my officers and say, 'what's the S, what's the T,' and they can tell you. If they can't, I've failed as a chief." Stevens said he's looking forward to the next police meet-up, planned for December. The location has not been announced.