STATE COLLEGE — For many people, an interaction with police comes during a traffic stop, an emergency call or another difficult moment.
Coffee and Conversation offers a different way to meet the officers behind the uniforms — with coffee, donuts and a chance to talk before anyone needs to dial 911.
State College Police Department will hold its third Coffee and Conversation event from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 2, in the State College Municipal Building lobby, 243 S. Allen St. in recognition of National Coffee with a Cop Day.
Community Relations Officer Kyleen Abrahamson said residents are invited to stop in, grab a cup of coffee and speak with officers who serve their neighborhoods.
“It’ll be mostly just relaxed conversation, a chance for them to stop by, grab coffee, ask questions or tell us whatever’s on their mind,” Abrahamson said. “And then just to meet the officers who are here in their department, their area.”
Abrahamson, who has worked with the State College Police Department for seven years, said Coffee and Conversation was not an event she knew of when she became community relations officer. Seeing National Coffee with a Cop Day as an opportunity, she wanted to establish a local event that could bring officers and residents together.
The first gathering drew a smaller crowd, she said, but attendance grew last year. The department ran out of coffee and donuts.
“Last year was great,” Abrahamson said. “So I’m hoping it’s just an even bigger and better opportunity to engage with community members this Friday.”
Past conversations have not been dominated by complaints, she said. Although common neighborhood concerns such as noise occasionally arise, many visitors have simply enjoyed meeting officers in an informal setting.
“I think everybody just had a good opportunity to just talk and get to know people,” Abrahamson said. “Most people were just coming and enjoying the opportunity to kind of meet under no pressure.”
That relaxed atmosphere is part of the purpose. Abrahamson said the department needs opportunities to meet people before an emergency or enforcement situation brings them together.
“We need opportunities where we can talk to community members, get to know them before something goes wrong so that they know we’re a resource,” she said. “We need community help. And so building that partnership and just being a part of the community is something that’s important.”
Abrahamson said she hopes the conversations make it easier for residents to approach officers with questions and concerns.
“The more they get to know us, that it’ll humanize us and they’ll feel more comfortable just approaching us on any given day, not just when they need to call 911,” she said.
The department will also participate in the borough’s Trunk or Treat event from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Oct. 29 in the municipal building. Abrahamson said it will give residents another opportunity to meet representatives from several borough departments.
For Friday, she is preparing for a larger turnout and making sure the coffee holds out.
“I’m hoping for a good turnout and better than last year because I’m ordering way more coffee than last year,” she said.
