Canton PD urges healing through kindness
By GuestBy Canton Police Chief Helena Rafferty
The men and women of the Canton Police Department are hoping that Canton residents, business owners and passersby in general have noticed the decorations at the police station this holiday season.
Helena Rafferty
Although meant to be a festive, non-denominational display, there is significance to the chosen decorations. On this 10th anniversary of the Sandy Hook School tragedy (December 14, 2012), where 27 lives — including 20 innocent children — were taken by senseless violence, the CPD wanted to put together a presentation of symbolism.
There are seven stars among the trees and the number represents the seven days of the week that we miss our loved ones. Stars light the sky in the darkness and give equal light to everyone no matter what race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. you are affiliated with. They do not discriminate. The stars themselves represent those who have passed due to acts of violence, substance use disorder, acts related to mental illness, disease, accidental deaths, natural causes and defense of our town and country. Together those seven stars are lighting the way for each of us to come out of the darkness!
Although there is only one wreath this year (next year they will adorn all the windows), it signifies the never-ending circle of community and is bolstered by the green and white “Bulldog” candles lighting up our windows. Next year, you will see the green “Peace on Earth” sign (backordered this year), which is the wish that every officer has for you and your families during this holiday season and the year ahead.
On our four large trees out front, known as the “acts of kindness” trees, you will see lights that appear to be tears falling. You will also notice that there are no decorations on the trees. The tears at this point in time represent sadness for the state of the world. So each year beginning on December 13, as our toy drive ends, we will ask those in our community to perform an act of kindness and request the giver or recipient email Chief Rafferty (hrafferty@town.canton.ma.us) with the story behind them.
For each simple gesture performed, a snowflake will be added to the trees out front. That will serve as a visible sign to all of us that in Canton, we let people know they matter. It could be something like forfeiting your nail appointment to a person who is a caregiver for an ailing parent; purchasing latkes and visiting a friend in the Jewish faith who doesn’t have a lot of family around; stepping out of your comfort and attending a service in a house of worship that is not your own; delivering a holiday surprise package to someone who otherwise would not receive any gift; reaching out to someone who has had a loss in the past year and inviting them for coffee … the list is endless and really revolves around the gift of time!
We chose the snowflake because no snowflake is ever the same and neither are the people in our community. Together, snowflakes change the landscape and create a beautiful scene. Just like together, we make an amazing town! Once the tree is decorated, the teardrop lights will inevitably represent tears of happiness.
In is our intent to share the stories of goodwill (anonymously) in the New Year’s edition of the Canton Citizen. And we will be entering the emails of those who earned a snowflake into a monthly drawing for the year. A $27 gift card to Honey Dew Donuts will be rewarded in memory of each Sandy Hook life lost. We want to remind everyone to “DEW” something every day that makes the lives of others better. You have 1,440 minutes a day to make that impact; do it for one of the innocent children who never got that opportunity!
We want to give a huge shout-out to Billy Walsh and the Canton DPW crew for helping us get all of our exterior decorations up at the last minute. Internally, much gratitude goes to our maintenance personnel and Officer Pat Ward for their help in making our interior lobby and control room so welcoming and festive. We realize that we may have gotten a late start this year (supply chain hang-ups), but we have faith in the people of this town. Let’s hang some snowflakes so that it looks like a blizzard hit those trees and in doing so, make our community better — simple act by simple act! #1440
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