LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Deputy Sheriffs Association – in partnership with the Bay Area Deputy Sheriffs’ Charitable Foundation – is giving $12,000 for a special holiday shopping event for some less fortunate children in Lake County, some of whom were affected by the Valley fire.

The “shop with a first responder” event will take place from 7 to 10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 15, at the Walmart store in Clearlake, 15960 Dam Road.

Sixty children, who already have been selected, will receive $200 each to shop tax-free for warm winter clothes, as well as holiday gifts and other needed items on their lists.

Each child will team up with a local first responder or a community volunteer to help them shop.  Members from all local law enforcement agencies will be represented, as well as members from several fire agencies.

The Bay Area Deputy Sheriffs’ Charitable Foundation ( www.deputysheriffsfoundation.org ) provides financial support for prevention programs that serve the underprivileged and vulnerable youth in the Bay Area by assisting disadvantaged children in securing school supplies and clothing, and other programs that seek to prevent youth from turning to a life of crime.

Since 2004, the foundation's “Shop with a Deputy Sheriff” event has fulfilled holiday dreams of more than 3,600 Bay Area children who are at a disadvantage, and the numbers continue to grow. That annual event is made possible from the partnerships between the business community and law enforcement.

The shopping experience – which involves pairing the children with a deputy or a community volunteer – demonstrates to the children that someone cares for their welfare and development.

The foundation has followed several children from past events and watched them graduate high school. Foundation members have been told by the children that the deputy sheriffs’ programs gave them the incentives and encouragement to do better in school and in life.