Correspondent photo / Sean Barron ... Officer Casey Kelly of the Youngstown Police Department holds a bluegill that Gabe Rosete snagged during Monday’s Cops and Bobbers event at the New Middletown Farmers and Sportsmen Club. Gabe was among the 75 Paul C. Bunn fourth- and fifth-graders who took part in the event to build relations between children and law enforcement.

NEW MIDDLETOWN — Zaiden Ramun may have had to return a fish he caught to its natural habitat, but in its place, he will be able to take back what will likely be fond memories.

“Maybe an adult bass,” Zaiden, a fourth-grader at Paul C. Bunn Elementary School in Youngstown, said when asked what he hoped to pull from the lake.

Zaiden didn’t hook a bass, however, but he and fellow Bunn Elementary fourth-grader Izaiah Riley, who was on his first fishing trip, worked together to catch a bluegill from a large lake at the New Middletown Farmers and Sportsmen Club, 3341 E. Calla Road, the site of Monday’s Cops and Bobbers event.

Zaiden and Izaiah were among the estimated 75 fourth- and fifth-graders from Paul C. Bunn who took part in the three-hour fishing expedition. Perhaps more importantly, the anti-drug and anti-alcohol program provided opportunities for the children and law enforcement from several departments to establish positive relationships with one another.

Officers who came represented the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office as well as the New Middletown, Poland, Canfield, Youngstown and Beaver Township police departments.

“It’s definitely a great way to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community,” Casey Kelly of the Youngstown Police Department said.

Kelly, who has served eight years with the department, pointed to the program’s ability to allow children to view police officers in a more positive light, including letting them see that “we’re people too.” It also offers them an additional summer outdoor activity, and demonstrates that other positive outlets are available to them besides video games, said Kelly, son of Youngstown city Councilman Pat Kelly, D-5th Ward, who served 30 years with the YPD.

Soon after information about the program was disseminated, it was easy to convince the other officers to participate, Kelly added.

“It shows you how much the community cares and how much people care,” he said.

At one point, Kelly was all smiles as he helped Paul C. Bunn Elementary fourth-grader Gabe Rosete haul in a 6-inch bluegill before they tossed it back in the water that is home also to walleye, crappie and trout.

“It gets the kids outside, teaches outdoor recreation,” Dan Donoghue, a New Middletown Farmers and Sportsmen Club trustee, said about the catch-and-release fishing opportunity, adding, “Some of them have never been to Mill Creek Park.”

Monday’s event also was a good opportunity for the children to break the ice and melt their fear of approaching police officers, Donoghue added.

A catfish topped Briella Macleod’s list for what she hoped to scoop from the lake. Monday also marked the fourth or fifth time she has fished, a skill the Paul C. Bunn Elementary fourth-grader learned from her father, she said.

Jaime King, a Bunn Elementary fourth-grade English language-arts teacher, said she wants what her students catch from Monday’s outing to stick far longer than anything they may hook that the lake had to offer.

“I hope they get some more connections, not only with each other, but with the cops,” said King, who brought about 40 of her students to the club.

In addition, the event gave the fourth- and fifth-graders a level of independence they don’t often have in a classroom setting, she added.

“The overall consensus is that they’re loving it, and their personalities are shining through,” King said.

Bruce Palmer, a retired Youngstown police officer and teacher, said events such as Monday’s outdoor program also build relationships and foster trust among the schools, police officers and the larger community. In addition, Cops and Bobbers encourages the students to make positive choices and learn about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse at an early age, said Palmer, who is a substitute teacher at Paul C. Bunn Elementary.

He also expressed gratitude to Karen Klem, Paul C. Bunn Elementary’s principal; Evelyn Veal, dean of students; John Spencer of the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office; Lt. Frank Rutherford of the Youngstown Police Department; and his wife, Amy Rutherford, a physical education teacher, for making Monday’s outing and funfest possible.

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