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Aurora Police Efforts To Help Kids Taking Shape

Efforts by Aurora Police officers to help two charitable organizations that assist children are continuing to take shape.

The department’s 6th annual “Shave-A-Thon” which benefits the non-profit St. Baldrick’s Foundation is slated for April 22. Officers are also planning several fundraising events to help Special Olympics Illinois.

The St. Baldrick’s event will feature several Aurora officers who will shave their heads in exchange for donations at Mike and Denise’s, 1760 N. Farnsworth Av., Aurora, starting at 1 p.m. Aside from the “shave-a-thon”, a 50/50 raffle, prize raffles, and other surprises are planned. Raffle prizes include a variety of family oriented and sports related items like an autographed baseball from White Sox pitcher Gavin Floyd, a $100 Essence Suites gift certificate, family passes to Funway and Sci-Tech Museum, and numerous others.

There is still time for members of the general public to sign up as “shavees” to help the officers raise money. They are also seeking men and women to have 12 inches of their hair cut off and donated to “Locks of Love”, a public, non-profit organization established in 1997 which provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss.

Aurora Police hope to surpass the nearly $27,000 they raised last year for the organization which is dedicated to childhood cancer research. Since 2007, St. Baldrick’s events staged by the Aurora Police have netted over $124,000. Since its founding in 2000, the foundation has raised over $123 million to support cancer research and fellowships. The foundation uses the donations to fund more in childhood cancer research grants than any organization except the U.S. Government.

Aurora Police officers are taking donations and seeking raffle prize donations through the day of the event. For more information, contact Aurora Police Investigator Dave Adams at 630-256-5664. More information on the St. Baldrick’s Foundation can be found at www.stbaldricks.org.

Aurora Police have also been hard at work raising money and planning events to benefit Special Olympics Illinois.

A team of Aurora Police Officers and their family members raised over $3700 during the “Polar Plunge” held last month at Silver Springs State Park in Yorkville. In total, 320 people braved the icy waters of Loon Lake and raised $78,000 for the organization.

Aurora Police announced they will host a leg of the Illinois Special Olympics Torch Run on June 10 for the first time. The six mile run through various parts of the City is designed to bring awareness to the mission of Special Olympics and features officers carrying the “Flame of Hope” torch. The torch will eventually be carried through dozens of Illinois communities via 23 different legs (or routes) to its final destination which is the opening ceremonies of the Special Olympics Illinois Summer Games on June 15 at Illinois State University in Normal.

Once again this year, Aurora Police will stage “Cop on Top” events at four area Dunkin’ Donuts shops on June 1. In exchange for a donation to Special Olympics customers will receive a certificate for a free donut. The fundraisers will take place from 5 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Dunkin’ Donuts at 1237 N. Eola Rd.; 2380 S. Eola; 2112 W. Galena Blvd.; and 1255 N. Farnsworth Av. A variety of Special Olympics Torch Run memorabilia will also be for sale.

Several other events sponsored by the Aurora Police are still in the planning stages and will be announced as they are finalized. Their efforts last year raised over $15,000 to help Special Olympics Illinois continue to provide year-round training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

More information on any of the events is available from Sgt. Doug Podschweit who can be reached at 630-256-5772. More information on Special Olympics Illinois is available at www.soill.org.

Location: Aurora, Illinois

Contact: Sgt. Doug Podschweit, Aurora Police Department, (630) 256-5772