Ross Bridge residents celebrate Thank a Police Officer Day

Ross Bridge was decorated with blue balloons and ribbons on Saturday to show gratitude to the Hoover Police Department.

Anita Fisher, one of the organizers of Ross Bridge Thank a Police Officer Day, said she got the idea to decorate the neighborhood from a Facebook post. She didn’t know Sept. 19 was National Thank a Police Officer day, but after seeing something on Facebook, she wanted to organize something.

“We just through it would be a nice way to say, ‘Hoover Police, we recognize what you do, and we appreciate you,” Fisher said.

This year, they bought several balloons for the area as well as for individuals who wanted to decorate their mailboxes. She hopes next year there will be more planning and they can involve a fundraising element. Any money raised next year will be donated to families who have lost a loved one in the police force.

The event was also organized by Rhonda Bryant, who has several police officers in her family, including a brother with Hoover PD.

“These fine men who put their lives on the line every day all too often are treated with disrespect and must just accept it as part of the job,” Bryant said. “Not here in Ross Bridge – we love and appreciate our selfless public servants.”

Fisher said the community response was overwhelming, and they had to order balloons from multiple venues in order to fill requests. She said they hope the message and the event spreads across the city of Hoover in the future.

“We hope to deliver two messages – that we honor and respect our police officers, and if anything comes from this, that more people will just jump on board and show their respect,” Fisher said. “We hear so much negativity these days that we just wanted to have some positivity out there.”