Many young people dream of becoming a first responder as either a police officer or as a fire fighter. Thursday a young man in Pinehurst got to experience being both.
Tommy Craig is age 25 and has autism. Shannon Lee is a close friend of Tommy, and she is also a lifelong friend with Pinehurst Police Chief Fred Hanauer. Lee called Hanauer, and he arranged for Tommy to get up close and personal with the police and fire departments in Pinehurst.
Tommy got to sit in a fire truck and test the siren on a police patrol car. He even arrested Fire Chief Shon Branham for impersonating a famous entertainer. Having watched many episodes of the TV series Cops, Tommy knew how to handcuff and put Branham in the backseat of the patrol car.
Lee expressed her appreciation for the Pinehurst first responders who shared their time with Tommy. Lee thinks it is a good testament of small town first responders and how far they will go to put a smile on someone’s face like they did for Tommy on Thursday. “Someone has the dream of being one of them, you know that dream may not happen to them due to their disabilities, but it is in their heart,” Lee commented. As a final taste of being a policeman Tommy even shared some donuts with the cops.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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