PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend Police Department has partnered with nonprofit BlueBridge Alliance, inviting residents to support officers as they offer help to the community’s most vulnerable.
“We, as a police department, solicit donations from community members, from businesses, to help us with this,” said Deputy Chief Kamal Sharif at Monday’s city council meeting.
Sharif was sworn into his new role as deputy chief Monday night.
The department has already raised $6,500 for the program, which is being matched with $2,500 from BlueBridge Alliance, Sharif said.
BlueBridge Alliance co-founder and CEO Brian Spraklen wrote in an email that the new partnership is designed to give officers a way to provide immediate, on-the-spot assistance to people in crisis.
The program enables officers to forego delays tied to funding or paperwork.
Officers are issued cards connected to a community-supported fund, allowing them to address basic needs such as food, fuel or temporary shelter.
In November, officers committed to a no-shave November wherein they grew out their mustaches in an effort to raise funds, then donated them to the program, Sharif said.
BlueBridge provides debit-style scan cards to the department. Officers, including the department’s navigators, receive the cards.
While BlueBridge is the account owner, the PTPD would manage the account.
“As one of the managers of the program, I assign a dollar amount to each officer for them to use,” Sharif said.
Individuals interacting with law enforcement often may be contending with difficult circumstances or mental health struggles.
Sharif said he’s observed PTPD officers interfacing with those scenarios.
“While they’re doing that, the individual talks about being wet, hungry and needing a blanket,” Sharif said. “That officer can use that card to buy that individual a meal, a blanket. That’s what the program is in essence for.”
Offering another example, Sharif said an officer could use their card to purchase gasoline for an individual who may be stranded with their vehicle.
Spraklen said the program is built around accountability, requiring officers to upload receipts and brief field notes for each use, creating a record of how funds are spent while reducing administrative burden on officers.
The program is not oriented toward ongoing benefits for individuals, Sharif said.
“It’s more of a one-time use,” Sharif said.
The card also can be used for one-time gifts, around Christmas time, for example, Sharif said.
Those interested in donating or viewing the donation portal can visit bluebridgealliance.org/porttownsendwapd. The portal allows for one-time or monthly donations.
Sharif learned about the program at a conference last year. After seeing a representative present on the program, Sharif said he immediately approached him and inquired about how to enroll.
BlueBridge Alliance’s website lists 53 Washington law enforcement agencies participating in the program, including PTPD and Port Angeles Police Department, which isn’t yet live but currently going through the process, Spraklen said.
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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@peninsuladailynews.com.
