Riverhead residents share coffee, conversation and concerns with local police officers at morning meet-ups

Riverhead police officers heard questions and concerns from locals this morning at four popular breakfast stops.

Officers went to Duffy’s Deli in Jamesport, McDonald’s on Old Country Road in Riverhead, Express Deli and Cafe on Osborn Avenue and Wading River Deli to chat with locals from 7:30 to 9 a.m. this morning.

The morning meet-ups are intended to create a dialogue between officers and the community.

“We wanted to provide a comfortable environment where we’re not down at the police station, we’re not in your homes. We picked an intermediate location to have a comfortable conversation,” explained Sgt. Jon Devereaux.  Spanish-speaking Police Officer Byron Perez went with  Police Officer Sean Evans to the Express Deli Cafe to hear the concerns of the Hispanic population.

Over at Duffy’s Deli in Jamesport, a steady stream of customers stopped to say hi throughout the morning, from residents and local business owners to Suffolk County Legislator Al Krupski.

 “We’ve had no complaints,” said Sgt. Ron Atkinson. “Everyone is happy to see it,” he said, noting that the most common concern he heard as he enjoyed his coffee at Duffy’s this morning was about the “fall traffic season.”

“We’ve got to start looking at each other as people, instead of this us versus them mentality,” said Duffy’s manager Ian O’Keeffe.

“It went very well,” Devereaux said later. “I can see us doing this again, going forward.”

Coffee with a Cop is a national program first launched in Hawthorne, California in 2011, the result of a brainstorming session on ways to better connect with the community. The events have now been hosted in all 50 states and the program is considered one of the most successful community-oriented policing programs in the country.

Having a cup of coffee with citizens is “a simple plan to break through the barriers that have been built over the years, whether by  shifting demographics or the shift to different and less personal modes of communication.

It opens the door for interactions outside of the crisis situations that typically bring law enforcement officers and community members together, according to organizers.

Bringing the program to Riverhead was Chief David Hegermiller’s idea. Hegermiller said he learned about it online.

“It’s a unique way for the community to get to know police as people,” he said. “It was successful and I definitely plan on doing it again next year.”