Hoping to spread holiday cheer to the less fortunate, the Wayne State University Police Department will launch its first annual Stuff A Scout Car holiday gift drive next week, urging donors to fill two WSUPD squad cars parked on campus with as many gifts as possible. The gifts will be presented to local families when the drive ends.

The squad cars will be parked in two locations — one on the west side of Old Main, near W. Warren and Second avenues; the other along Anthony Wayne Drive near Merrick Street, near Ghafari Hall — from Dec. 11 to Dec. 16. Campus police officers may occasionally be posted near the squad cars to encourage giving, but donations can be dropped off at any time. 

The gifts will be presented on Dec. 20 at Edmonson Elementary, which has partnered with WSUPD to target at least five families for charity this holiday season. The department seeks four distinct types of gifts: items children want, need, can wear or can read.

"My passion lies with helping the community – especially the children,” said WSUPD Capt. Brandi Richards, coordinator of auxiliary functions for the campus police and organizer of the gift drive. “If we’re going to continue to grow as a Wayne State community, it starts with uplifting them, and it starts now. Helping them in this small way may pay off in bigger ways in the long run.”

Richards said that she also hopes the gift drive helps strengthen ties

between university law enforcement and the surrounding community.

“I’m also trying to narrow the gap between our relationship with Wayne State and the community in general,” she said. “When public safety is called, it is usually to handle some sort of problem. We are often meeting people at their worst, or we’re having to deal with things that negatively impact the community, so there may be a gap in perceptions. I'm trying to bridge that gap, and this is my start.”

Click here to learn more about the Stuff A Scout Car campaign.