Pensacola police and Target bring holiday cheer to teens with shopping spree

PENSACOLA, Fla. — It’s the final countdown to Christmas.

The Pensacola Police Department is spreading some holiday cheer. Officers spent Monday morning treating teens to a shopping spree.

Police say it’s their way of giving back. The kids were excited to shop for themselves and their loved ones.

Teens like, Kayllah Allen, were treated to a shopping spree.

“To know that we have people in the community that care about us, is really — it’s really good, and it means a lot.”

It’s a partnership between PPD and department store Target.

The company hosts an annual “Heroes and Helpers” campaign. Officers nominate families who have faced hardships in the last year.

‘”We may investigate homicides, we may investigate other violent crimes,” says Laura Mager, police community outreach and engagement manager. “And it’s one of those things that those kids stick with us, they stick with our detectives, they stick with our team, they stick with who we are as individuals.”

Mager with PPD says this year’s group is mainly impacted by homicides in the area.

“What we really want to do is flip that switch, and really see some smiles at the end of the year,” says Mager.

Nine teens shopped along the aisles with officers, each with a $100 gift card to cross items off their wish list.

“Whatever the kids may want… from clothes, shoes, toothpaste, makeup, it doesn’t matter,” says executive team lead for service and engagement Tashoy Walters.

“I got two jackets… Some scented candles, two throw blankets, hot Cheeto puffs,” Allen says.

This was a chance for the teens to treat themselves. Some decided to pay their gift forward.

“I think we saw probably four of the kids that were in the store today, buying for others,” Mager says. “And here they are with the opportunity to get whatever they wanted, and they were buying presents for their mom, buying presents for their brothers and sisters.”

This is typically the case for Allen, shopping for her younger sister and friends. Although she treated herself this time around, she says she’s still thinking of others this Christmas.

“I kind of want to do, to where I have my mom and my dad cook, and we go around giving back to the homeless or go to shelters and stuff to give back food,” says Allen.

PPD chose 20 families to give back to this year.

While the older children shopped for their own gifts, they held a separate event with presents for younger children.