On Christmas Day, 22nd District police officer Tiffiny Washington was walking down Esmond Street toward the station when a car turned off 111th Street and pulled up behind her. The woman in the car said, “Thank you for all you do. Thank you for being here on Christmas,” and handed Officer Washington an envelope.
Warmed by the greeting, Officer Washington opened the envelope expecting a Christmas card maybe a small gift card for food or coffee – it’s not unusual for 22nd District officers to receive them from area residents who appreciate the fine work of our dedicated local police.
But what Officer Washington found inside was cash. A lot of it.
She walked inside and over to the desk and showed it to her Sergeant. Ten one-hundred dollar bills were tucked inside a card that read “CPD Person, Thank you for working on Christmas to serve and protect us. Merry Christmas!”
The card, signed only with first names, contained an anonymous gift much too large to be accepted by a police officer. The police Board of Ethics requires that this kind of gift be donated to a qualifying not-for-profit organization. “We decided it should go to the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation (CPMF), which does do many good things for officers and their families,” Officer Washington said. The gift was presented in February.
“It was an awesome experience,” Officer Washington said, acknowledging with gratitude the generosity of the anonymous donor. “It was a really pure thing to do.”
The $1000 donation will be used by CPMF to honor fallen police officers, help the families of police officers who were killed or catastrophically injured in the line of duty, and to help initiatives that help the police do their jobs safely, such as providing bullet-proof vests through Get Behind the Vest.
Tiffiny Washington, currently a traffic officer, has been with the 22nd District for seven years and with CPD for nine years. Prior to that, she served with the Maywood Police.
Officer Tim Smith, 22nd District Watch Commander, said Officer Washington’s fellow officers at 22 “love having her here because of her honest and integrity.” She loves being an officer at 22. “It’s my home,” she said. “I love being a Chicago Police Officer. I love it.”
