Oceanside CA— Around 100 members of the community joined politicians, City officials, Oceanside City Council-members, Mayor Wood and firefighters in a show of support to local law enforcement officers in the Oceanside Police Department parking lot, Wednesday evening.
There were no speeches, just a few prayers to open the hastily organized event and then music, snacks, pizza, more pizza, conversation, hugs and lots photos.
“We put this together in about 48 hours.” said event organizer, Paul McQuigg of Oceanside.
“After what happened in Dallas, I heard a lot of people say they support the police but they just didn’t know how to say thank you to them.” continued Paul, “So it was kind of like, if you build it, they will come. I always wanted to say thank you to the officers patrolling my street, keeping me safe. I thought if I could get just a few people to bring some snacks and get together, it would be a good way to say thank you.”
Paul believes that an event like the one on Wednesday is mutually beneficial. “A city relies on its police force and in turn, the police rely on the citizens. An event like this is a good community builder. After Dallas, gatherings like this are needed not just locally or in the U.S., but across the world.”
An unrelated event in support of law enforcement is scheduled 4:00-6:00pm, Sunday, July 17. The Sunday Concert in the Park is ‘ Honor Our Police Day’ with music by Taylor Tickner and Robert Parker at Heritage Park, 220 Peyri Drive, in Oceanside. The Friends of Oceanside Parks will present a community appreciation award to the Oceanside Police Department.
Did we mention pizza?