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heat heat heat [Music]
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heat [Music]
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heat heat heat [Music]
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n heat heat n [Music]
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heat heat
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heat heat
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[Music]
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come
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on come on
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don't give
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[Music]
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[Music] y'all don't have to be afraid to say it
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back good evening how's everybody doing tonight
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if you're still getting settled putting stuff down finishing up your photos i wasn't i wasn't going to call you'all
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out you can keep going if you want feel free to get settled in we're going to get the program started my name
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is alex giles i'm from wbtv here in charlotte i'd like to welcome you all to the 45th annual police community
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relations [Applause] awards i've gotten to do this a few
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times and it's become one of my favorite events that i get to be a part of because i get to see so many officers
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from our community get honored not only in front of their peers but in front of their family members and the leaders in
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our city and i think that's special i know you guys give up your weekdays week
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nights overnights weekends holidays can we have a round of applause for all the
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people in law enforcement in
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here thank you for what you do a few weeks back i actually interviewed one of
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last year's award recipients who was here at this exact event a year ago and we did an interview to put together a
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news story and i asked him what it was like to win this particular award and he had a cool quote and i wrote down part
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of it he said quote i think officers need to be recognized for the positive because sometimes we don't get
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that he went on to say quote it does a lot for your mindset it does a lot to
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make you want to continue doing the job i hope that each of you who is honored
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tonight feel the same way this evening i know you guys don't do it to be awarded
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and to be recognized in front of people you do it because you like serving and protecting and we appreciate that but
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just because you guys don't do it for the awards doesn't mean you can't be recognized in front of everybody so i appreciate everybody coming out tonight
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and i look forward to honoring some of the men and women in this room tonight with that said i'd like to
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welcome reverend dr clifford a jones from friendship missionary baptist church to deliver our
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[Applause]
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invocation is he in the building
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tonight anybody in here a pastor
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i'm going to give them like 15 more seconds and then we'll keep rolling i know everybody's very very
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busy right now uhoh they're putting the music
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up she went to the final okay
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[Music] he's coming i've received word that the pastor's in the
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building
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anybody got big weekend
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plans oh man
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nine thank you good to see you
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good evening point of privilege first of all thank you for uh choosing this venue to have
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this gathering and time of recognition uh friendship has been in charlotte 135
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years going back to 1890 and we used to be where nascar is
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on bvard street that's where this church used to be located we've been in west
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charlotte now since the mid60s so i just want to say thank you
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for all that you do and to our honores may the lord bless you and your families
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and for the sacrifices that you bring i'm not going to preach don't get
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uneasy but i needed to say thank you um and may god ever watch over you and keep
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you in his care as you daily enter harm's way um take care of your health
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and enjoy each day it's god's gift to you let us
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pray we're always humbled to be able to
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be in your presence literally there's no place that
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we can go on the planet of earth or any other place that
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exists that your presence is not there for in the very beginning you
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created the heavens and the earth and you said it was good thank you
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then in your own wisdom and providence you chose to create human
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beings very humble beginnings we had from the dust of the
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ground and then you chose to breathe into our nostrils a breath of
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life and we became living souls whether we lived in north pole or
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south america china or
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charlotte you've made us you've watched over us you've kept us
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thank you specifically this evening we've gathered
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with community we've gathered with those who have been called into service
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and through this wonderful organization that been set aside to say thank you for your
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sacrifice for your caring for your
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giving ever keep us in your care as we're still learning to walk
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more in the way and ways that are pleasing and acceptable
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unto you forgive us for the times that we haven't lived up to or
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lived in accordance to your will for our
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lives continue to be patient with us as we're yet growing into the
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fullness of what you have called us to be as human
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beings caring serving and sharing
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thank you now for this evening and for this wonderful time for
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which we say thank you to honores but we say a rousing thank you
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to you for being our god for being our
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keeper for being our sustainer and for being our
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provider and yes lord there are many traditions and many worship experiences and we don't denigrate any
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of them but as christians you've taught us
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to pray and that in praying whatsoever we shall ask we should ask it in your
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name and so to that end i say in the name of jesus the christ our resurrected
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lord and savior amen take care of yourselves i wish i could
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stay the entire time but for this time uh thank you and may god have a bless
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and keep you and your families wait a minute go ahead always you got it good
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take care thank you thank you okay give him one more round of applause
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reverend clifford a [Applause] jones at this time we'd like to
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acknowledge all the leaders in our community if you are an elected official or a local leader here please feel free
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to stand a round of applause for all the
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dignitaries in the building [Applause]
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tonight thank you at this time we'd like to have opening greetings and remarks
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from sam smith jr the chair of the community relations committee and yeet townsen ingram of the meckllinmberg
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board of county commissioners [Applause]
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how are you good evening everyone um i bring you
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greetings this is my church home so i feel very at home up here um every every
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sunday and every week um the reverend dr clifford jones feeds us and we eat and
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we eat and we eat just like that so um thank you for choosing this venue um my
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name is ivet townsen ingram i serve you as board of county commissioner at large
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um i'm the newest tadpole in the pond um been learning a lot um
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and let me just bring greetings from our nine member board and our chair um mark
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derell i am excited and both honored and excited to be here and i just want to
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say on behalf of the board on behalf of the community i know now emphatically
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the sacrifice of our service members county city
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school um if we could give you all the money that is needed to to protect you
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we absolutely would i would tell the city to do that because we're the county but anyway um thank you thank you for
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your sacrifice thank you to your families for your sacrifice congratulations to all of the honores
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but every single one of you from the bottom of our hearts we appreciate you
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[Applause] good evening
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everyone good evening everyone i know y'all ate good but don't fall asleep on this we got a long program um i want to
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also welcome you all to the 45th annual police community relations award can we give a round of applause to
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that i also want to take this opportunity to give another round of applause to all of our officers and
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their families that are in this space tonight with [Applause]
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us my name is sam smith jr and i have the um absolute honor to serve as the
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chair of the charlotte mechckinberg community relations committee um i want to take the uh a time of personal
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privilege to also recognize my vice chair miss miko mccarthy who is also here with us tonight if you could stand
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miko so this evening is all about uh celebrations um when i was told it was
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at the church i was a little bummed about it and then i asked miss dolores um could we bring some champagne if
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we're going to celebrate and she reminded me about who was going to be in the room so bringing
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champagne wouldn't that be a good idea so i'm happy when we at the church and we don't have the champagne here but
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tonight we're going to celebrate um so tonight we are here to recognize um outstanding individuals who go above and
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beyond every single day those who serve with integrity lead with compassion and
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are deeply committed to building trust across communities the powerful partnerships between our law enforcement
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professionals and community members are what makes charlotte stronger safer and more connected tonight's award um
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highlight officers who have made a real difference by building positive relationships solving um problems
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handinhand with residents and showing up with the heart and purpose the nominations came from all um
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every corner in our community which goes to show how widespread and impactful
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your work truly is i want to take this opportunity to recognize a few uh folks and groups in
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the room i want to first start by recognizing the charlotte the incredible charlotte meckllinburgg community
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relations committee will members of the committee please stand up and be recognized
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[Applause]
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i also want to thank um the police award planning team led by my second mom mr
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dolores reed smith if you all could please stand and be [Applause]
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recognized i know they hate when i do this but i have to do this um i want to thank the charlotte me the charlotte
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community relations uh department if you all could please stand and be recognized for your hard
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[Applause]
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work and to our generous sponsors carolina's panthers fool lion meckhammer
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county wp wbtv um thank you all um for sponsoring this event and also thank you
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to everyone who submitted a nomination for all of our officers in the space and to the charlotte and to the entire
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charlotte mechckinberg police department thank you for your service thank you for your sacrifice thank you for your
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unwavering commitment to keeping our community safe to all of our nominees
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tonight and all of our winners congratulations you are all change makers and let's celebrate tonight thank
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you [Applause]
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thank you sam and thank you uvette at this time we want to recap some of the history and highlights of this ceremony
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if i could have dolores reed smith the chair of the police community relations awards planning committee join me up
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front [Applause]
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good evening again and thank you all for being here to celebrate the incredible
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work of our law enforcement officers and the relationships that they've built
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across our community in 1979 the charlotte meckllinburgg
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community relations committee created this program to spotlight officers who
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go above and beyond to ensure our safety and combat crime all while
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fostering understanding and unity since the awards program's inception members
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of the charlotte meckllinburgg community have nominated nearly 4,000 law enforcement officers after
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this evening's program over 500 will have been recognized with a
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police community relations award to all of you in the building if you've
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ever won this award before please
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stand now see why is it that your children always the ones don't do what
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you say bryley get up you won before uhhuh see it's your
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children always your children that don't do what you tell them to do okay the poster boards on the outside
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at the front of the room list all the winners since 1979 and tonight we're excited to add
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another group of officers to that list let's take a moment to recognize all of
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this year's nominees for the annual police community relations award if you
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were nominated this year please stand
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these officers nominated were nominated by citizens
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educators students and groups that showcase their innovation in solving
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neighborhood challenges all semifinalists will receive a token of
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our appreciation through a very thorough process tonight's award recipients have
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been selected by our esteemed judges from the charlotte meckllinmberg
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community relations committee and as a part of that
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committee it saddens me to say we have two members of that committee who will
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be rolling off of the community relations committee this year and they have served very faithfully to this
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subcommittee and i want to apart from the others recognize them and that's my
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vice chair karen gibson and miss barbara ratliff get up barbara
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as we get ready to announce the recipients let's give a round of
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applause to the families friends and community members who took the time to
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support and acknowledge and nominate these exceptional officers and that's
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you
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your nominations fuel the celebration of service sacrifice each award recipient
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will be recognized with a plaque and a monetary gift provided by our generous
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sponsors i want my cut out all them okay i encourage you to keep shining a light
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on the extraordinary work happening in our neighborhoods and our schools and
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our communities together we are stronger and safer thank
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you all right who's ready to see some folks get awards
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quick rundown of how this is going to work when i read an officer's name an award recipient feel free to get up and
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come to the front our presenters will pass you your award please stand until
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i'm finished reading about you i know that can be awkward but enjoy the
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moment some folks have career highlights listed some of these offers officers we
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have the actual nomination writeup that was submitted about you some of you submitted a personal testimonial and
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we've got copies of that so i'll be reading some of that naturally some of these messages are longer than others
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but at the end of the day they are all special i'm going to read them as i announce each recipient let's
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begin could our presenters come to the front
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as dolores said it is an honor just to be nominated so thank you again to all of the men and women who are here
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tonight from the cmpd our first award recipient of the evening is captain
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trent beam of the westover
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division this is what the community member who nominated him wrote a vital partner in our organization the save our
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children movement incorporated carries out our objectives our agency works with youth in lowincome high crime areas
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having an officer like captain beam to assist us in ways such as communication on opportunities responding to client
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issues and providing needed resources on a con consistent basis is a blessing to us and our clients furthermore he takes
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the time to hear us out and connect us to the resource that best fits our need
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give captain beam a round of applause thank
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[Applause] you captain beam said "we are the community and the community is the
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police community itself gives the power responsibility and trust to a police department for it to function." awesome
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our second award recipient of the night officer jamal andrews of the westover
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[Applause]
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division the person who nominated officer andrews wrote "he's shown a profound dedication to building
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authentic problem-solving relationships within the community he's had a journey with the west boulevard ministry that
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began through the barbecue for blue initiative where officers are provided meals on the last friday of each month
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this initiative served as the initial connection between him and wbm but it didn't take him long for his commitment
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to go far beyond just participating nearly a year ago he made a personal decision to serve weekly at the stars
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academy a mentorship program for boys in fourth through 8th grade who lack father figures in their lives he serves as a
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coach helping to fill the void and providing a positive consistent male role model give officer andrews a round
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of applause officer andrews wrote "i have
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had the awesome opportunity to volunteer with a group that works with at risk black and brown boys that live and or go
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to school in the wto division this volunteer work has opened channels especially after i told these young boys
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that i was a police officer." fantastic work officer
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andrews our third recipient tonight is officer steedman graham of the north trion
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[Applause] division might have a new leader for
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loudest cheer officer graham we have a message
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that you wrote he said "community relations is important to me because i get to meet people and talk to people
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within the community the people within the community see and know all that happens in their community the
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relationship between officers and the community can help you with information gathering if something happens to an
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officer the relationship that officer has in the community can make a difference on getting help from the
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community when officers need it most i enjoy making connections with people and engaging with the community on a
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day-to-day basis community relations is a very important part of this job
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[Applause]
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congratulations our fourth recipient tonight is officer matthew draper of the independence division
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[Applause]
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the person who nominated him wrote "he makes efforts to not only build positive community relationships he also models
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that behavior and teaches other officers how to do so as well." while working at bank of america stadium he has built
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positive relationships with the fans attending events giving them a more positive experience he is supportive of
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the staff and makes an effort to support community events officer draper wrote "police community
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relations is an integral part of policing especially in today's frequently used model of community
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policing i feel that police community relations thrive with three core aspects: education understanding and
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connection." congratulations officer draper [Applause]
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our fifth recipient tonight is officer hassan rogers an sro at west
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[Applause] charlotte this is what someone wrote
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about officer rogers this is this officer is our school resource officer at west charlotte high he thrives in a
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dynamic environment with almost 2,100 scholars their families and guardians
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and 200 staff members i know they keep you busy he is committed to building
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positive relationships with all stakeholders and has been a consistent and positive presence over the past two
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years you can often find him bringing in snacks incentives treats and other items for the scholars or finding scholars
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frequenting his office to check in with him or sign up for one of his programs he has the respect of his colleagues and
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serves as a critical member of our positive team he works together with others to keep the campus safe and
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secure give officer hassan rogers a round of
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applause our sixth recipient tonight is major tory telus of the university city
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division man when i got the list i tried to cross you off i was like he don't need one
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here's what a community member wrote about major telus as a dedicated leader
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within the cmpd and a key community partner in university city major telus has demonstrated outstanding commitment
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to strengthening relationships between law enforcement and the residents and businesses of university city through
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his proactive leadership strategic initiatives and deep community engagement he has significantly enhanced
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public safety and trust he has been instrumental in fostering positive relationships between law enforcement
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and the university city community his leadership has encouraged innovative outreach programs creating opportunities
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for open dialogue transparency and collaboration between cmpd officers and
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residents
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congratulations
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our next recipient tonight officer michael casic of the
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university the person who nominated officer casic wrote "he has availed himself to our neighborhood and readily
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comes to speak at our neighborhood watch meetings he is always friendly and informative." officer casix wrote
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"police community relations are more than a brief hello in passing building a strong relationship with the community
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creates bonds that last for years when there is a deep rooted connection both sides support each other through good
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times and bad because the trust and commitment between the two carries through." congratulations officer kas
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our eighth recipient tonight is sergeant christopher
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pinkney here's what someone wrote about sergeant pinkney this officer has been committed to providing resources and
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support to local organizations to provide awareness of domestic violence his overall support and awareness to
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individuals when discussing domestic violence is much appreciated he maintains his professionalism throughout
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any interaction here are some highlights from officer pikney's career he launched
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cmpd's inaugural domestic violence awareness fair with the goal of proactively connecting survivors to
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vital resources and bringing partner agencies together to strengthen our collective impact he says it was an
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opportunity to extend community outreach into a deeply sensitive and critical area of policing thank you for your
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service [Applause]
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congratulations we did have a couple winners who were unfortunately unable to make it tonight one of them was
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lieutenant brent harrison of the westover division i know some of his colleagues are
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here the person who nominated lieutenant harrison wrote "he builds positive relationships with the community through
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his outreach efforts and awareness of need." last year he took the time to help recognize officers in the westover
35:42
division by connecting them with community members who brought them gifts during police week give lieutenant
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harrison another round of
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applause also a winner who was unable to make it tonight officer matthew montgomery of the westover division
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the person who nominated him wrote "charlotte water had a great experience with officer montgomery while preparing
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to clear a city of charlotte property for a future elevated water storage tank before crews could begin clearing the
36:16
site had ongoing safety and vandalism concerns and officer montgomery was a tremendous asset to the charlotte water
36:22
team and the contractors in cleaning up that area give officer montgomery one more round of applause
36:33
this is always cool we have a youth award tonight that goes to a young leader in our
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community our winner of the youth award this year is nelly hernandez
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morales i was told she's in the building tonight if you are here feel free to
36:51
come to the front is she hiding there you are
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congratulations nelly she has shown excellent leadership and academic growth not only when she
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has interacted with cmpd officers but also in her community life our youth
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award winner this year nelly hernandez
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morales
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[Applause]
37:33
could we have a final round of applause for all of our winners this year and everyone who is nominated as
37:43
well thank you for your service to this community at this time i'd like to introduce deputy chief chery of the cmpd
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to deliver remarks on behalf of the department
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[Applause]
38:04
he's much taller than i am i'm sorry he's just so much taller it's fantastic
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uh what a real honor it is for me to be here this afternoon on behalf of chief jennings all of the command staff and
38:15
all of our officers our brave men and women good evening everyone what a privilege it is to be here today to
38:21
celebrate the incredible work being done to strengthen the bonds between the charlotte mechanburg police department
38:27
and the community we serve for over four decades since 1979 the police community relations
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awards have stood as a testament to the enduring commitment of our officers and our residents to work together this
38:42
annual event hosted by the charlotte mechinberg community relations committee is more than just an awards ceremony
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it's a powerful reminder of what we can achieve when we build bridges of understanding and trust today we honor a
38:56
special group of our cmpd officers who embody the spirit of community policing
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they are the men and women who go the extra mile who see beyond the uniform and who forge genuine connections with
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the people that they serve your dedication to listening
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understanding and collaborating with our residents and neighborhood groups is truly commendable you are the living
39:20
examples of what it means to be the guardians of our community each of your stories the initiatives you've
39:27
spearheaded the relationships you've nurtured the challenges you've overcome together are inspiring and serve as a
39:34
model for all of us strong police community relations are
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not just a desirable goal they are fundamental to creating safer more
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vibrant and more united communities for everyone in our city trust is the
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bedrock of effective policing when our community trusts us they are more likely to partner with us in preventing crime
39:58
sharing information and working towards common solutions these relationships foster mutual
40:05
understanding and empathy helping us to better address the diverse needs and concerns of our community
40:11
members while we celebrate the successes of today we also recognize that the work
40:16
of building and maintaining strong community relations is ongoing it
40:22
requires continuous effort open communication and a shared commitment from both the police department and our
40:28
residents the cmpd remains deeply committed to fostering a culture of collaboration
40:35
engagement at all levels of our organization we are grateful for the partnership of the charlotte
40:42
meckllinburg community relations committee and the countless residents and neighborhood groups who work
40:47
alongside our officers every day your support and dedication are invaluable
40:52
let us continue to build on the foundation laid by those who came before us ensuring that charlotte remains a
40:58
place where police and community work hand in hand to create a better future for all thank you again to our award
41:06
recipients for your exceptional service and your unwavering commitment to our community you make us all very proud
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thank you to the charlotte mechckinberg community relations committee for your tireless efforts in organizing this
41:20
important event and for your ongoing partnership and thank you to everyone
41:26
present today for your support of our police community relations together we
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can continue to make a real difference for this community have a good night thank
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you before i forget they asked me to remind
41:47
all of you that you are welcome to take the centerpieces on the tables so before we close if anyone would like to grab
41:53
those or claim them now now is the time to do that before we finish or right after we finish up closing remarks we'd
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like all of our award winners to come up to the front for a group photo at the end is that okay everybody cool with
42:07
that at this time to close us out i'd like to welcome charlotte mayor v liles and terry bradley of the crc
42:15
[Applause]
42:23
thank you alex let's give alex a hand he does this every
42:29
[Applause] year he does it with grace and he does
42:35
it with optimism and i know that you could be at home with the kids and but
42:40
you're not you're you are meant to be today thank you so very much alex so i
42:46
want to say thank you to all of you for being here today um it has been truly a
42:53
way that we can learn how we can love each other if we only had this kind of
42:58
room every place in the city now we know that's not possible but what
43:04
you have made possible is for all of you to be here tonight and all of you who
43:10
have contributed so very much to what this city is and will always
43:15
be we don't take it very literally around questions and things like this
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but i like to think about it taking it as someone who cares deeply about this
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community cares deeply about the people here we want everyone in this city to be
43:34
able to thrive we want everyone in this community to feel like they're safe and
43:39
you do a lot to make that possible for us we recognize it we try to make sure
43:45
that we understand things that we can do and do better it's not easy it's not an
43:51
easy job and i know that not because i have been a police officer just because i can see what you
43:58
are doing all the time and what grace you have and give to us so i want to say
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on behalf of the entire city and this state in this place that we are so proud
44:11
when we get the ability to recognize people who go farther and farther away
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and i just want to say thank you for that maybe sometimes we don't know what gratitude really means but in this room
44:23
tonight i truly see and feel gratitude from all of you thank you very much for
44:29
being here tonight we're so proud of you we want you to be the very best that we can always have and we'll make sure that
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we try our best to support you in every way possible thank you very much
44:49
thank you mayor um so it's my privilege to kind of close us out i am fighting
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against some time because i know you guys have had that mac and cheese so if y'all start swerving we know it's the
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mac and cheese making you a little drowsy so as we come to a close of our 45th annual police awards uh community
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relations awards i want to express my sincere appreciation for again for the community relations committee and also
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the staff can we give them one more round of
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applause it it takes the entire team our staff to pull these um these events
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together whether it's a little thing but it it takes us um all kind of putting in
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and trying to make sure this is a successful event and by the large um attendance room i think we've done a pretty good job um also just um want to
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also look at the uh our community relations director i know he's he's not here but um everything that he kind of
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envisions us doing i think i see the details in this room so uh although he's
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not here let's give him a round of applause as well but willie ratford
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um the support of the the city of charlotte and meckllinburgg county leaders along with our elected officials we surely appreciate you so let's give
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them another round of applause for
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them um tonight is a reminder of what is possible when community members and law
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enforcement work together um these awards don't just recognize the outstanding service and sacrifice of our
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cmpd officers they celebrate trust the connection and progress and in the
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spirit of collaboration and community building i leave you with this this this this charge let's all remain committed
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to building a stronger safer charlotte mechburg for everyone thank you and
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congratulations to our cmpd
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officers it has been an honor i appreciate you guys welcoming me once again thank you to all of our officers
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in the community thank you to their families we appreciate you being here congratulations to the winners and
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please get home safe [Applause]
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[Music]