Grafton police to take part in Faith & Blue outreach effort

The Grafton Police Department will be participating in a number of open discussions in the village Oct. 8 and 11 as part of the national Faith & Blue initiative. 

Faith & Blue: Building Bridges to More Inclusive Communities is a series of events in which police departments throughout the country connect with community members through local faith-based organizations and other groups to enhance police-community relations. 

In conjunction with the initiative, the Grafton Police Department will be involved in four public forums throughout the village. 

On Friday, Oct. 8, from 10 a.m. to noon, Grafton Police Chief Jeff Caponera will be at the Manchester Heights senior apartment complex to deliver greetings, conduct an open discussion on policing, discuss how police are working to enhance public safety, offer prayers and host a question-and-answer session.

Caponera will host a similar event at Village Pointe Commons, an assisted-living facility, the same day from 1 to 3 p.m. 

Discussions and Q&A sessions hosted by Caponera will also be held Monday, Oct. 11, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Berkshire Grafton senior apartment complex and from 1 to 3 p.m. at Providence Place senior living center. 

In addition to the forum events, faith-based organizations will be given large canvases for a message board activity. On Sunday, Oct. 10, community members will be invited to write messages or draw illustrations on the canvas describing what policing means to them. 

Churches participating in the activity include Vineyard, New Life, Ozaukee Congregational, St. Joseph, St. Paul and Heritage Baptist. 

Faith leaders will deliver the canvases to the police department Oct. 12 for review and discussion with officers. 

The canvases will be displayed in the department for the public to view. 

Faith & Blue is an initiative first organized in October 2020 by MoveForward, Inc., a civil rights organization based in Atlanta, and the United States Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

This is the first year the Grafton Police Department will be hosting Faith & Blue events.