A summer evening filled with tacos, ice cream, live performances, and games became something much bigger at the Robinson Community Learning Center (RCLC).
Held July 17, the annual Cops and Community event brought together more than 250 community members, including 14 South Bend police officers. Understanding the value of positive interactions, officers spent the evening playing games with local families, while building relationships with neighbors.
"My two officers that learned to play gaga ball ended up having more fun than the kids," joked South Bend Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski. "And they didn't need worker's comp when they were done!"
Ruszkowski said the event gives officers an opportunity to interact with residents outside of their everyday roles.
"Just like police, we know the Robinson Center works on behalf of the community all the time," he said. “It's such a great, stress-free environment for our officers to interact with the community. It's an opportunity to get to know the community, and our cops love it."
Twenty-four AmeriCorps members helped lead activities throughout the evening, while campers in RCLC's summer theater program entertained the crowd with a preview of their upcoming production of Señorita Mariposa.
For parents, the event reflected what makes the RCLC a special place.
"The event at the Robinson Center was really just what community is all about," said Michael Griffin, whose daughter attends camp. "To see the kids from the camps singing, local nonprofits and the police all enjoying a great evening—even in the heat—was what makes this community great."
Elisa Campos Duarte, whose two sons attended camp this summer, said the evening mirrored the positive experience her family has enjoyed the past few months.
“The sports are great and the teachers are amazing," she said. "I love seeing all these families out supporting our kids. My boys want to come back next summer!"
For Clare Roach, associate director of the Robinson Community Learning Center, events like Cops and Community embody the center's mission of bringing people together.
"These kinds of events are exactly what the Robinson Center does best—building bridges throughout our community," Roach said. "Positive interactions between our South Bend police officers and our families help strengthen relationships that last long after the evening ends."
The event was made possible through the generous support of Notre Dame Federal Credit Union, which underwrote the evening as part of its ongoing partnership with RCLC. Red Ball Tennis and USTA also provided nets, balls, and rackets for the event, as well as the training for staff. Families enjoyed tacos from Frankie's Tacos, ice cream from The Paddy Shack, and shade provided by Notre Dame Gameday Events—all local NDFCU members who helped bring the community celebration to life.
Photos provided by Matt Cashore, University Photographer