Sheriff, kids go Christmas shopping

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) - While it may not be a white Christmas, it will certainly be a merry one for some kids in Portsmouth thanks to the sheriff's office.

The Portsmouth Sheriff's Office, with the help of the local Wal-Mart, got a chance to spread some holiday cheer.

"We got 22 kids that are happy right now. Kids that would not normally have Christmas. We bring them out once a year. We are going to try and make it an annual thing and we try to give them a certain amount of money to buy presents," Sheriff Bill Watson said.

Deputies volunteered to take the little shoppers around the store. Most of the kids got the good stuff for themselves, but one young man had a list and he made sure he checked it twice.

"For my dad, it's a rug; for my grandma, it's some kitchen towels; from my other grandma, it's some house shoes," 10-year-old Damon Birten said.

Birten got into the Christmas spirit by making sure his family came first.

"You need to take care of your family a lot of times, not just at the holidays. You got to take care of your family everyday," Birten explained.

Watson added, "It gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling that you have helped somebody and it puts a smile on a kid's face. Plus, it puts a good relationship between a kid and a badge. That way they wont be afraid of police or deputies."

Watson said all of the money used for the shopping trip came from private funds within the office.