This time of year I had a rare slow day on the job so I actually got home at a decent time. A cold front is moving through the Ozarks and my wife had a fire going in the fireplace so I sat on the hearth and was unlacing my boots when the phone rang. I got up and answered.

"Hello."

"Deputy Faulkner, this is Mrs. Brock." She's my neighbor just down the road. Nice widow lady who's husband passed away about three years ago.

"Hey, Mrs. Brock, how you doing?" I asked.

"I'm fine. Listen, I'm on my way to town and wanted to know if it's okay if I stop by for just a minute. I know it's supper time so I won't stay but a minute."

"Sure Mrs. Brock, you know you're welcome anytime." I said.

"Okay, I'll see you shortly," she replied.

Less than ten minutes later my wife saw Mrs. Brock coming up the drive in her car, so I went to great her at the front door.

"Good evening Mrs. Brock, come on in and get out of the chill. We have a fire going to warm you up," I motioned for her to come in.

She stepped in and handed me a covered pie carrier. "I can't stay, I'm headed to a Christmas fellowship at the senior citizens center in town, but I made this apple pie for you this afternoon and wanted to drop it off while it was still warm."

"Wow, Mrs. Brock, that's mighty nice of you, but what in the world did we do to deserve this?" I asked.

"You know I love your family to death, but I made this pie for you. I've been watching the meanness they've been showing on TV lately and the news people have been trying to make all the policemen look like a bunch of hoodlums. I've been bothered by that because I can see how you leave early and come home late and then get called out at all hours to deal with stuff that most of us don't even know goes on around here." Bless her heart, she had a tear in her eye.

She continued on, "I'm a old widow woman and I can't do much, but I can still bake a mean apple pie and I just thought this afternoon that, by golly, I can bake a pie just for you and say 'thank you' for the things you do."

My wife came over and we both gave Mrs. Brock a big ole hug, then she wiped her eyes on her coat sleeve and said, "well, I gotta go."

"Thank you ma'am, you coming by here means a whole lot to me," I told her as I walked her to the door.

As she was walking to her car my 18 year old son was coming up the drive. He waved at Mrs. Brock as she drove off and I was still in the doorway holding the pie when he came in. As he passed by he leaned down and sniffed and with some excitement said, "that smells good, did Mrs. Brock bring us a hot apple pie? I'm starving!"

"Son," I said, "she brought this pie to me!" I gave him the knowing squinted look that a father gives a child to get their attention and said, "I might share, and I might not. But if you touch this pie without me saying it's okay I guarantee you'll loose some fingers."

It was a mighty tasty pie!

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Excellent story, and even though I am from a long ways away, and only know you from the things I've read, I think Mrs. Brock must be a pretty good judge of character.

Nice story, bless her heart. You deserve the pie. I always remember your story about buying the kids Happy Meals. God bless and Merry Christmas, Faulkner.

There are Some Apple Pies
Worth Losing a Digit or Two
That Just May be One of Them

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Compact 9mm Just my $0.02

You done good if she didn't leave it at the window like Sheriff Bart's pie!

Wow, that is awesome. These are the kinds of things the media should be reporting on, regarding LEO's.

She deserves a "like"

Just posted in another thread about the growing (IMO) disconnect between local Police officers and the citizens of their communities.....glad to see it's not universal.

Glad to hear that at least she's staying connected with her LEOs.
I learned in the Army what happens when you become disconnected with the populace. Your jobs become exponentially tougher and their lives become exponentially more dangerous.
A well deserved Karma. Lets hope for more of the same to appear.

Well folks, this goes to show, it's not the price of a gift that counts, it's the love in which it's given.

A big LIKE Faulkner, for being who you are.


WuzzFuzz

A nice post, Faulkner. Mrs. Brock sounds like a nice neighbor to have & she obviously sees the same in you. That apple pie is quite a reward, on many levels. Keep on doing what you do!

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Lounge Lizard Extraordinaire

Great story to start my day with - thank you.

Very Nice!

My dad told me of an old(er) woman in his township who, back in the day, would regularly bake things for the officers on patrol and leave them in her mailbox for the midnight guys.

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Don

The world needs more Mrs Brocks.

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Isaiah 41:10

Thanks Faulkner for "kickin off" my Christmas season. That is a great story and a big THANKS for sharing it. May God bless all our LEO's and a remote "thanks" for all you do.

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Bill
Dis B. Leaf

"Some folks do still appreciate the police."

Believe me Sir, The percentages that appreciate the police are 99 to 1. It's the one percent that make all the noise.

Merry Christmas

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Vietnam 1969-1971

Yes! And more Mr. Faulkner's too!! My guess is there's a whole lot more good than bad out there. At least that's my observation.

God Bless Mrs. Brock, you, and all Law Enforcement Officers and
first responders.

Stu

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NRA Benefactor/Cert Instructor

It ain't. In my area, none of that blm garbage is happening. I was leaving the Texas Roadhouse restaurant with my sister about 6 weeks ago, and saw a CCPD Sergeant coming in and wearing a Blue Lives Matter shirt. I thanked him and shook his hand as he went in with his wife.

Faulkner, please let us know if you shared that baked heaven, w/ your son. Its a gift well deserved.

In between making stuff for the ladies at Freedom Fitness, sometimes I make kolachies for a few LEOs I know including county Constables.

Regularly I bake for the ladies, Blueberry muffins, cinnamon rolls that I magically enhance sausage cheese kolachies, honey bacon cornbread and nut rolls which include, cherries, raisins and a tad of egg. So far nobody has returned my baked goods.

PS, a friend of mine let the ladies know I also make a great egg salad. Just this morning I got two requests for some. Also forgot, they ask for my cinnamon chocolate chip cookies as well...ulp.

Yeah, I put it in the oven to keep it warm then I shared a slice each with my wife and son after supper. It was fantastic.

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Ringo, I have to say....honey bacon cornbread caught my attention!
I'll have to have a go at making some of that!
Good on ya for passing all those goodies around to them.

Tipping my hat to you and Mrs. Brock

LOL... my first thought too. We're both going to H-E- double hockey sticks ya know...

I know I sure do!

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You're shy a few manners.

One summer day while I was on patrol I came upon a vehicle towing a boat stopped on the medium strip shoulder. I could see that there was a flat on the trailer and the man and his wife were trying to change the tire. After positioning my squad and activating my lights I approached the couple and asked if they needed a hand. They had a spare but their jack was not suited for changing the trailer tire. I went back to my squad and brought back my scissor jack and soon the tire was on.

The couple thanked me and I went back to my squad. While I was filling out a contact report the man's wife came back to my squad carrying a paper plate with aluminum foil over the top. She said that they would like to thank me for the help and made me a plate of food. I thanked her and told her that I would make sure they would enter the highway safely.

After I got them on their way, I pulled off the highway and opened the foil to find some of the best tasting fried chicken, potato salad, and baked beans. I really enjoyed my lunch.

Sometimes it is just how you treat people. The family was black, I am white.

"Never look down on anyone, unless you're there to help them up"

Faulkner, I believe you know how lucky you are.

I'm finally starting to understand it's truly the little gestures, such as the one you described, that mean so much.

Your welcome to it. I recently resupplied all the ingredients, and I have 6 packages of bacon, that's: WRIGHTS bacon.

You are so right!

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A home made deep dish apple pie with a fresh pot of fresh regular black coffee is heaven on earth.

(p.s. how many fingers does 18 year old son have left ?)

All right... Who's the wiseguy that started cutting onions in my room as I read these stories?

Bad cops exist, but they are thankfully in the minority. It's an injustice that they sully the reputation of the good ones.

I agree that there are bad cops . . . and bad judges, and bad school teachers, and bad elected officials, and bad firemen, and bad preachers, and bad CEO's, and bad parents, and bad kids. It's not a cop thing, it's a issue with our society. We have too many people who don't practice or have never heard of the golden rule.

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It is rare, but lately I've had a few citizens walk up to me and say "I just wanted to say thank you for being a Deputy"

I always reply "Sir/Madame/Otherwise, a simple thank you makes it all worthwhile"

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Un-Reconstructed Southerner

What a great neighbor to have. We have been Blessed
with good people living around us as well.
Rest assured sir, there are more of US that "support and
believe", in our LEO community than the other types.

Merry Christmas
Chuck

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They hold no Quarter

It's amazing what a heart-felt "thank you" can mean to folks.

"Thank you" to Faulkner, to Mrs. Brock and to everyone else who make our lives more safe and/or meaningful. AND, "thank you" to all those who say "thank you"!

Merry Christmas, my friends.

I've never been bothered by police unless I was doing something i wasn't supposed to. On other occasions to have contact, it was helpful if not downright friendly.

It sounds strange, but most of you heard about our "Police raid" when my son what trying to do everything in the world wrong. They told me what they were there for and I said, PLEASE come in and look around. So he and some of his friends got caught and I was glad he did, because I KNEW that the only thing that would get his attention was if he HUNG HIMSELF and he needed to do that before he got killed. We had done all we could. While waiting for their orders as to what to do with them we all sat around the living room and laughed and joked and had a good ole time. One kid said it was stupid to let them in. I told him that if it happened again I'd do the same thing.

I have had a FEW negative experiences with police, but not involving anything I did. I'm glad to see them in the neighborhood and anytime we called them they were here quick.

Thanks to all of you. It has to be really rough to be in LE nowadays but a lot of us are behind you.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Thanks, Faulkner. I don't know about the other folks here, but I sure needed that story. It wasn't too long ago I was ranting about how many people have lost all respect for law enforcement. Your story showed me that there is still that little ray of hope out there and there are still some great citizens who appreciate all that you LEO's do. Enjoy the pie. You deserve it.

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Pack light and cinch tight.

I agree with you Mule Packer . . . I think the media on the left coast must have a vision of a far different America than most of us see.

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Faulkner - I just saw your post - warmed my heart and brought a tear to my eyes. Thanks for sharing this one.


Pete99004

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Don't tread on me

Falkner and the rest of you guys that wear a badge, Thank you and stay safe.

Mrs. Brock and others like her are treasures.

Are there any places for sale on your street Falkner? I'd sure like to live amongst people like you.

Mmmm Pie.

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Dum vivo cano

I made the original post back in December and a lot has happened in the past six months in our nation that has kept law enforcement in the news.

My birthday was last week and as my family and I were leaving after church services on Sunday my wife caught my arm and said, "hey, there's a box over there with your name on it."

There was an envelop on the box with a hand written note in it that read;

"Dear Deputy Faulkner,

I saw in the church bulletin announcements last week that it was your birthday this week. I wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday, but somehow, a card just didn't seem to be enough. I wanted you to know that my family and I pray for you and your co-workers every day. We also pray for your precious wife and two fine sons. We know that even though we don't live in a community fraught with violence, every time you put on your badge and leave your home you are stepping out in harm's way.

Bless you for your willingness to do what you do. It comforts me to know if I ever have to call 911 for help that you and others like you would come running. Thank you and happy birthday!"

The note was unsigned.

I opened the box and gee whiz, am I like the lucky pie guy or what? This rhubarb and strawberry pie looks almost too good to eat. I got it home, snapped a picture, and I'm telling you boys, it tastes as good as it looks . . . but more than that, I take some comfort in knowing folks do care.

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So where's the quart of milk and the S&W protecting it?

Seriously, that's awesome, and the pie ain't too shabby either. Congrats, and thank you and our LEO community for your service.

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50 Years of DSOTM

Deputy Faulkner,

You and other members of law enforcement must know that the vast majority of us support all of you. The wacko press does not represent me, us and only put forth the agenda to .... well spark, foment trouble.

You and your fellow LEO's, in my circle of family and friends, are well regarded and supported. God Bless you and yours. Take care old son and... I hate to say it, now days...check six often.

I echo DevilDog, bless you all and enjoy that pie!
I haven't had a strawberry-rhubarb since I was a kid at Grandmas
I sure do miss it!

Deputy Faulkner,

Somehow I missed this thread last December(In my defense, the family has elected me to host the annual Christmas gathering every year, and things get a little busy.). You have some great folks supporting you there; I'm sure you're thankful. And of course you and your coworkers are eminently worthy.

The thread reminded me that I don't express my support for area law enforcement nearly as much as I ought. It's an easy habit to fall into; this is a town of a thousand mostly Mayberry types, and the two officers here encounter little trouble in their daily duties. It's easy under such conditions to forget that they're around -not a good thing to do. But I talk with them occasionally, and will try to remember to offer a good word as the opportunity arises.

Of course I don't benefit directly from your labors; nevertheless let me express my gratitude and respect also for your dedication to serve the people in your jurisdiction. Blessings on you, sir.

Regards,
Andy

What a wonderful story, it will never get old. God bless our Thin Blue Line and the families who worry and pray. You are welcome at our house any time, and with enough notice, my wife makes the best apple pie, except for Mrs. Brock's, in the world.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

Boy that pie looks great. @#^$$#--that's the sound of my waist bursting my trausers just looking at it.

BTW, just last week we had our annual LEO appreciation day. The local LEOs were serving customers at various restaurants. Our former Chief--used to do that annually.