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'You embody everything that anybody wishes they could be' | Sheriff's deputy recognized as Hyundai Hometown Hero for community service

A Rowan County sheriff's deputy was named the latest Hyundai Hometown Hero for going above and beyond the call of duty to help those in need.

SALISBURY, N.C. — Rowan County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Crystal Scott is known in the community for always doing what she can to help others. 

"She is definitely one who likes to stay in the background,” Hurley Elementary School Principal Jennifer Brown said.

WCNC Charlotte Anchor Fred Shropshire showed up under the guise of interviewing Scott about her extra duties as a school resource officer at Hurley in Salisbury, North Carolina, but he wasn’t actually there to talk to her about that. He was there to award her as the latest Hyundai Hometown Hero.

"You embody everything that anybody wishes they could be, and for you to have three separate nominations is pretty clear that you are definitely the example of a hometown hero,” Gabriel Faria from Keffer Hyundai said as he handed Scott the keys to her new car.

“What? That's not for me,” she asked.

“Yes, it is,” Shropshire replied.

“No way!” she exclaimed. "So this is mine? That's crazy! I would have never expected this."

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Shropshire explained she was recognized for not only the work she does as a sheriff but also for her community efforts.

"But I didn't do it by myself,” Crystal Scott explained. “It's a community effort. It's not just me.”

RELATED: Dedicated SPCA volunteer surprised with a new Hyundai Santa Fe

An unexpected award for a very deserving law enforcement officer.

"If she tells you she's going to do something, she's going to do it," her husband David Scott said.

David Scott is also a sheriff’s deputy, and he was one of a few who nominated Crystal Scott for the award.

"She’s constantly working on projects,” he said. “She's working on it when she's off the clock."

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Many of those projects include helping those in need at the elementary school with service projects. She purchased books for all of the students and is in charge of Operation Christmas Blessings, which helps provide Christmas gifts to students at schools that may not otherwise receive gifts.

RELATED: 'Everything that is right in this world' | St. Gabriel teacher rises to the pandemic challenge to become Hyundai Hometown Hero

"She supports our students, our staff every day, so it was absolutely unanimous that I recommended her for this and nominated her for this," Brown said. "She really wants to be a positive light in all instances for all of our kids. As a human as well as an officer."

Congratulations Deputy Crystal Scott for going above and beyond the call of duty. 

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