Chatham IL Police Department

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟱 𝗕𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗢𝘄𝗻 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲

𝘓𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢 𝘝𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘖𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘳

After spending more than a decade and a half working in schools, talking with thousands of students, investigating countless incidents, and sitting across from heartbroken parents, I’ve learned a few issues parents should consider of most importance.

𝟏. 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐃𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠

Every parent worries about their child getting into a crash.

What many don’t realize is that some of the most dangerous driving habits are learned by watching us.

Teenagers notice when we glance at a text message. They notice when we answer a quick call. They notice when we convince ourselves that checking a notification is harmless.

Years later, they do the same thing behind the wheel.

The lesson isn’t “don’t text and drive.”

The lesson is: if we want our kids to take distracted driving seriously, they need to see us take it seriously first.

𝟐. 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞

One of the biggest mistakes adults make is assuming social media is simply entertainment.

It isn’t.

Social media shapes beliefs, values, priorities, relationships, attention spans, and self-worth.

Every day I meet parents who know what their child ate for dinner but have no idea what their child watched for six hours online.

The reality is simple:

If a teenager spends more time listening to influencers than parents, influencers will eventually have more influence.

Parents cannot outsource the development of their child’s character to an algorithm.

𝟑. 𝐕𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

When I first became a School Resource Officer, va**ng wasn’t a major issue.

Today, it is one of the most common problems I encounter.

Many students don’t view va**ng as dangerous because it doesn’t look dangerous. There’s no smoke-filled room. No dramatic warning signs.

Instead, addiction quietly takes hold one puff at a time.

I’ve met students who struggle to make it through a school day without ni****ne. I’ve watched families spend years fighting a battle that began with “just trying it once.”

The earlier parents address va**ng, the easier the battle becomes.

𝟒. 𝐋𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲

Some of the most successful young adults I’ve met weren’t the smartest, fastest, or most talented.

They were the ones who learned accountability.

They learned how to accept correction.

They learned how to respect others even when they disagreed.

They learned that actions have consequences.

Respect is not about creating obedient children.

It’s about preparing them for a world where employers, spouses, friends, coaches, and communities all expect a certain level of maturity and responsibility.

Children who learn accountability early tend to face fewer painful lessons later.

𝟓. 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞

Technology is a wonderful tool.

The problem begins when it stops being a tool and becomes a lifestyle.

Many families spend more time looking at screens than looking at each other.

Children are growing up with fewer conversations, fewer adventures, fewer family stories, and fewer opportunities to be bored enough to discover who they really are.

One day your child will not remember the videos they watched.

They will remember camping trips.

Family dinners.

Road trips.

Inside jokes.

Conversations on the porch.

Moments when they felt seen, heard, and valued.

Those memories are built face-to-face, not screen-to-screen.

𝘼 𝙁𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩

The families that thrive are not the families with perfect children.

They’re the families with engaged parents.

Parents who are willing to have uncomfortable conversations.

Parents who set boundaries.

Parents who stay involved.

Parents who understand that raising children is not about being popular. It’s about being present.

The good news is that every one of these threats can be reduced through intentional parenting.

You don’t have to win every battle today.

You simply have to keep showing up.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥, Officer Gomez, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦! 🙌✨

𝙌𝙪𝙤𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 ❤️💙

This is one of our super cool and highly visible squad cars that has the word POLICE written all over it. We'll be using it and others just like it for the rest of the summer as we partner with the Illinois Department of Transportation to keep our roadways safe.

We’ll be on the lookout for people speeding, driving distracted on their phones, not wearing their safety belts, or driving impaired and putting others on the roadway at risk. We are doing this to help keep our little community safe for all.

Why are we posting this extremely straightforward message? It’s because our goal isn't to go out and write a bunch of tickets, it’s the exact opposite. Our hope is that word spreads with this post that we are out and about, and we don’t have to write ANY tickets.

So, friends, please obey the posted speed limits, put your cell phone down while driving, buckle up, and don't drink and drive. Tell everyone you know we will be cracking down on all of the above, to help us get the word out far and wide. We’re just trying to keep our little town safe, and that’s a message we can all get behind.

Thanks!

💙🚔🇺🇸

Happy Father’s Day to all the amazing dads out there making a difference in the lives of their children. By simply being present in their lives and raising them up with tender love and care, your actions are absolutely having not only a positive impact on them, but on the world around you as well, in ways you may not even see or realize. We cannot possibly thank you all or celebrate you all enough. Enjoy your special day today!

From all of us…Happy Father’s Day!! 💙❤️

"𝙈𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙜𝙞𝙛𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣, 𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙢𝙚."

- Jim Valvano

"𝘼𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙖 𝙙𝙖𝙙, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙖𝙙, 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙩 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩."

- Wade Boggs

"𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚, 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧."

- Harper Lee

"𝙉𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙."

- Abraham Lincoln

"𝘼 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙤 𝙣𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬."

– Unknown

"𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙, 𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠."

– Linda Poindexter

"𝘿𝙖𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙚𝙨, 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙧𝙨, 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜."

– Unknown

"𝙉𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙄 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧'𝙨 𝙚𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝."

– Hedy Lamarr

"𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙚: 𝙈𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙧𝙞𝙫𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙞𝙢, 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙖 𝙛𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚."

- Liza Minnelli

"𝙈𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙙'𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚."

- Cher Lloyd

"𝙈𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚. 𝙃𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙙𝙤 𝙞𝙩."

- Clarence Budington Kelland

"𝙏𝙤 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙖 𝙙𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧."

- Euripides

"𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧'𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣."

- Sigmund Freud

"𝘼𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙙𝙤𝙢."

- C.S. Lewis

"𝘼 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙪𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚."

- Steve Martin

"𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙖 𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨."

- George Herbert

"𝙉𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙."

- William Shakespeare

“𝙏𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚.”

- F***y Fern

"𝘼 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙢 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙮.”

- Emile Gaboriau

"𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙚𝙨, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣'𝙩 𝙢𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙙."

- Unknown

"𝙃𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙠𝙞𝙙 𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 12, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮."

- Mike Myers

"𝘿𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣, 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙣𝙙."

- George Strait

“𝘽𝙮 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖𝙡𝙨𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙧, 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙧, 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧. 𝘼 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙮𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙; 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙨, 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙮𝙨.”

- General Douglas MacArthur

“𝙃𝙚 𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩: 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧.”

- Tom Wolfe

“𝙄𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙞𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙚𝙣.”

- Frederick Douglass

"𝙇𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮'𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙄'𝙢 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙙 𝙄'𝙢 𝙣𝙤𝙩."

- Dan Zevin

“𝙄 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙪𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝙤𝙙𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨, 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙪𝙨. 𝙒𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙙𝙤𝙢.”

- Umberto Eco, Foucault’s Pendulum

“𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧, 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙢𝙚, 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙞𝙩.”

- George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings

"𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙤𝙣'𝙨 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧"

- Tiger Schroff

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙥𝙞𝙚𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚.”

- Antoine François Prévost, Manon Lescaut

“𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙢𝙮 𝙥𝙖𝙥𝙖 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨, 𝙄 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨.”

- Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙄 𝙜𝙚𝙩, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙢𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙚𝙩.”

- Tim Russert

“𝘼 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙚𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙪𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙣𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙪𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙜𝙪𝙞𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙪𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮.”

- Unknown

At CPD, we know that pets are like family. When they get out or run away, it can be very stressful and upsetting until they return home safely.

To help reunite lost pets with their families, we have an electronic pet chip reader our officers can use when they encounter them in the field. This chip reader allows us to quickly identify the pet’s owner and, if the pet has a chip that is registered and includes contact information for the owner, we can quickly get them back home to their family.

This is a public service we are proud to offer to our community.

We are always here if you need us, Chatham.

💙🚔🇺🇸

📸: Officer Skylar McManus

𝙋𝙎 - 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙥𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙, 𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙩, 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚, 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙣𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧(𝙨). 𝙎𝙖𝙙𝙡𝙮, 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢. 𝙋𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙩! 🙌

Y’all know who you are! Yes…this means you too, Gary! 🙌

To the anonymous citizen who brought in cupcakes for our officers, thank you! 😊

We heard you had a choice between bringing them into the Chatham Fire Department or our place, and we’re just here to say you definitely made the right choice. They are delicious!

Besides, everybody knows cops are wayyy cooler than firefighters! 🙌

The Chatham Police Department is proud to partner with those who are also in the business of protecting children from harm.

The Illinois Attorney General's Office Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) will be hosting a FREE, short online training for parents. The webinar is titled "Video Games and Your Child: Spotting Red Flags and Staying Safe Online" and is designed to help parents better understand the online gaming environment and recognize potential risks their children may encounter.

𝘒𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘦: 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦, 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴 (𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵), 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦. 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯-𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴.

𝘈𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘴, 𝘢𝘥𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘉𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘺, 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴.

The training will take place live on Tuesday, June 23rd from 2:00 - 3:15 pm ET, and you can register for it at this link: https://icactaskforce.org/training/TRI1228800/video-games-and-your-child-spotting-red-flags-and-staying-safe-online?utm_source=cc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2026-ICAC-internet+safety+month+webinar&utm_id=presenting&utm_term=icac&utm_content=link

We highly encourage parents and guardians to check this important training webinar out!

Sharing for the person who really needs to see this today…𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦! 🙏

National Domestic Violence Hotline (800)799-SAFE (7233)

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