The boys take a look at the police car. Photo by Mackenzie Lewis
On a recent afternoon, Wyatt and Henry Rotchford’s dreams came true when they had the opportunity to get a tour of the New Canaan Police Department with Chief Leon Krolikowski. The 4- and 5-year old brothers won the trip to the Police Department through a drawing at First Presbyterian Nursery School, which they attend.
Accompanied by their mother, Leslie Rotchford, the brothers said they were excited to see where the police officers work—Wyatt could not stop talking about how many police Legos he had at home.
Before the tour began, Henry told New Canaanite: “I’m most excited to see the jail where the bad guys go.”
The boys got a sneak peek into the offices where police work, had their fingerprints taken and even sat in a police car. They also stopped in to see Officer Ron Bentley, who showed the brothers how he receives a 911 call.
At the end of the NCPD tour, Leslie complimented the Police Department for a great visit.
“They loved it,” she said. “They loved the police and all of the police officers and chief were so nice and took them and showed them everything. It was awesome.”
Krolikowski told New Canaanite that both him and the whole Police Department staff love taking kids around and tries to bring New Canaanites on tours frequently.
“It’s fun,” Krolikowski said. “I love doing it. We [give kids a tour] several times a year and it’s a nice way to interact with the people in the community and show them what we do and our officers and our facility that most people don’t know. So its a nice thing. Most people have no idea what we do and the things that we have to deal with so this is a nice outreach.”
Both Henry and Wyatt were pleased and thankful for their visit to the Police Department. They were even given goodie bags with their very own police badges. Henry told New Canaanite that his favorite part was “at the end, sitting inside the police car.”
His older brother Wyatt agreed. “The police car,” Wyatt said. “And the jail.”
