CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Residents at an east Charlotte recreation center Monday were able to paint new doormats during an event hosted by the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. The sheriff’s office Community Engagement Team hosted the sip and paint for older adults at the Eastway Regional Recreation Center.
Each participant was given a doormat and a stencil they used to paint messages and designs.
The doormat messages varied. While one wrote, “Please leave your worries and shoes at the door,” another wrote, “Grandkids welcome, parents by appointment”.
“With this event, it is just one of those things where we are trying to bridge the gap and break the barriers down,” Michael McCray, a detention officer with the community engagement team, said. “That’s why we are out here.”
The goal of the community engagement team is to strengthen relationships between the community and the sheriff’s office, according to the sheriff’s office. They want to show people they are more than “just patrolling and out to arrest people,” McCray said.
“Our main objectives are to bring people together,” he said.
The community engagement team typically serves at senior centers in the Charlotte area.
Gwendolyn Craig, who attended the event Monday, believes the sheriff’s office’s engagement has a significant impact on the community.
“I think it shows they [Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office] have an overall respect for and want to be involved in community events and this is a good opportunity for them to participate,” Craig said.
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office maintains a list of upcoming community events on its website.