LYNN ― The Lynn Police Department (LPD) spent Sunday afternoon eating pizza and desserts, playing cornhole, and mingling with members of the Washington Street Baptist Church in celebration of Faith and Blue Weekend.
The Faith and Blue Weekend initiative launched in October of 2020 — in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and other deaths involving law enforcement, to help foster ongoing, authentic, and mutual community law-enforcement trust.
LPD partnered with Pastor Peter Balantine from the Washington Street Baptist Church to organize an afternoon for officers to come to the church and spend time with the members of the congregation in a casual setting.
LPD has had a relationship with this church for years, as they are neighbors to the department’s headquarters, and have hosted food drives and annual Thanksgiving turkey donations for years.
Deputy Chief Lenny Desmarais and Balantine decided to extend their pre-existing relationship by joining the more than 2,000 departments nationwide involved in the Faith and Blue initiative.
“We are so excited to be able to do this,” Balantine said. “We’re hoping that we can just build relationships and help our culture and our city. There’s a lot of division in our country and we need to focus on the things that unite us, not just divide us.”
As a church, Balantine said, they want the best for the city just as much as the officers do, so getting to know each other and building relationships will be beneficial.
Chief Chris Reddy said the department was happy to be with the members of the church, having conversations and playing games and just getting to know each other.
“I think that anytime we have an opportunity to meet and talk with people informally, and not at a call, is a good opportunity to be with the community,” Reddy said. “When you have that informal interaction, it helps to see each other as people, not as our roles, and that’s how you build relationships and have dialogue.”
Reddy said he hopes this will make it easier for community members to reach out to officers and he encourages them to work together, listen, and collaborate.
Youth and adult pastor Marquis Lockhart said he moved to Lynn from New York and stayed because of the sense of community and family he felt in the church.
Lockhart said the Faith and Blue event was a great opportunity for members of his church to get to know the officers and the person behind the uniform.
“The officers also get to know us as more than just a civilian,” Lockhart said. “You have this fear and stigma because they have the title and the badge, but now I actually know them.”
Members of the church said they enjoyed spending the afternoon with the officers and talking about a variety of topics ranging from the city, family, work, the church, and more.
Faith and Blue has branched out to numerous congregations across the country; the LPD and Balantine said they were happy to join in on the initiative.
Allysha Dunnigan can be reached at [email protected]
