On Thursday, May 25th the Seneca Nation Cattaraugus Marshals Department had their annual Community Outreach Program Family Night at the Saylor Building. The fun filled family event included games, such as cornhole and videogaming. A hot dog cold plate was sponsored by Native Pride and kettle corn and slushies were provided by local vendor, Jason Seneca, all of which were free for all who attended. Attendees were also entered into a door prize raffle for various gift cards which were donated by the SNI Council Office.
Seneca Child and Family Services and Crime Victims Services provided their respective program information and sponsored their own door prize raffles. The highlight of the evening was the presence of Public Safety First Responders whose presence was coordinated through a collaboration between the Cattaraugus Marshals Department and our own Erie County Sheriff Deputy, Brian Mohr. The various departments displayed equipment and welcomed attendees to enter and explore while provided summaries of how they used the equipment and their roles in emergency response, which was spectacular!
- Seneca Fire and EMS displayed their fire trucks and ambulances.
- Mercy Flight arrived with their beautiful state-of-the-art helicopter which is used to expedite transport of patients for emergency life-saving care.
- The Erie County Sheriff Mounted Reserve Division brought their horse and explained that this unit began in 1942 because the horse provided an elevated height advantage to patrol large crowds and functioned as a means for crowd control.
- The Erie County Sheriff Motorcycle Division-This unit is used to control traffic and as an escort for celebrities, the Buffalo Bills, and high-ranking political officials.
- The Erie County Sheriff S.W.A.T. (Special Weapons and Tactics) arrived with their Lenco BearCat, which is an armored vehicle designed to transport the S.W.A.T team who are a specialized and highly trained unit who focus on high-risk incidence response. The BearCat also protects and assists in the recovery of civilians caught in harm’s way during incidents such as terrorist attacks, hostage incidents, or riots.
- The Erie County Sheriff K-9 Unit brought their canine officer, K9 Bo. Attendees were allowed to pet the dog and learn about how he tracks and detects narcotics.
- The Erie County Sheriff’s Department also set up a pop-up Child ID station where parents could get current pictures, personal statistics, and fingerprints of their children on an easy to carry ID card. The card could be used if the child ever goes missing. The information obtained is for the parent only and was not shared or kept within the department.
- New York State Police displayed their patrol vehicles and attendees were allowed to explore the units and the Troopers were happy to answer questions about their patrol duties.
The Community Outreach Program Spring Cash Raffle winners were also drawn during this event. The top prize was won by Renee Jimerson, followed by Alana Montour, Rick Blaszyk, Tom Stevens, Darrelyn Scanlan, Shaniece Mohawk, and Aiden Waterman. Thank you everyone who purchased a ticket and supported the program.
The Cattaraugus Marshals Department would like to extend our sincere appreciation to everyone who donated, coordinated, displayed, and attended this event. None of this would have been possible without everyone’s participation. We look forward to our next event and hope everyone attends so we can make these events bigger and better.
Nya:wëh!
