The men and women of the Camp Verde Marshal’s Office worked extra shifts this weekend. But instead of their usual duties patrolling Camp Verde, they took on a different role as waiters at the Corner Table restaurant in the Village of Oak Creek.
The CVMO initiated its first Tip-A-Cop event on Friday, Sept. 22, and Saturday, Sept. 23, to raise funds for the Arizona Special Olympics in advance of a bocce tournament on Saturday, Sept. 29, in Camp Verde. Officers joined Corner Table’s staff by coming around to tables refilling water for patrons and helping out in whatever ways they could, requesting donations to the Special Olympics in lieu of tips.
“The Special Olympics is such a great cause. It’s a wonderful program,” said CVMO Cmdr. Brian Armstrong, who organized the Tip-A-Cop event. “We just wanted to add something else.”
Armstrong, a Village of Oak Creek resident, said he is a frequent customer of Corner Table and felt it would be an ideal location for the event, especially due to the Marshal’s Office’s relationship with the business — Corner Table frequently caters the office’s annual awards banquet.
“There’s a lot of tourist traffic that comes through for the resorts,” Armstrong said of Corner Table. “It’s been fun talking to people outside our normal area. It’s fun getting to know tourists from across the country.”
The management of Corner Table said they were eager to participate with what they saw as a good cause worth supporting.
“We feel like we’re giving back to the community,” Corner Table co-owner Nancy Sells said. “Using our venue is a good way to help a good cause like the Special Olympics.”
“I grew up in foster care and I promised myself I would help others in need when I had the opportunity,” said Dyanna Sells, another co- owner of the restaurant and Nancy’s daughter-in-law. “The Verde Valley is such a small community, and we have to help each other.”
Sells said she was pleased to see that the restaurant’s patrons, many of whom did not know beforehand about the event, were receptive and generous to the fundraiser.
“It’s a great idea. It’s a good cause and it’s good to see the police officers come out into the community,” said Bill Linnemon, a VOC resident who was at Corner Table with his wife Shelly. Linnemon viewed the Special Olympics as an especially good reason for the police officers to lend their services to fundraising.
“To see the underprivileged, and see the things they can do and achieve, to see the happiness on their faces, it’s fantastic,” he said.
Jon Hecht can be reached at 634-8551, or email jhecht@larsonnewspapers.com
