General Headquarters' Employees Answer Samaritan Center's Call For Help

Major Bret Johnson, Support Services Bureau Commander, followed by Captain Ron Walker, Field Operations Bureau, carry out boxes of food to a truck to be delivered to the Samaritan Center as Major Bob Bloomberg, Technical Services Bureau Commander, returns for another box.

Above left, Lieutenant John Hotz, Public Information and Education Division, and above center, Major Bob Bloomberg, Technical Services Bureau Commander, carry boxes of food to the pickup trucks, like the one in the picture above right, to be delivered to the Samaritan Center.

Above are pickup trucks loaded with some of the boxes of food delivered to the Samaritan Center in Jefferson City on November 2.

Colonel James F. Keathley, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, wishes to recognize the compassion and sense of community among the agency's employees. When a call for help came from the Samaritan Center, in Jefferson City, Patrol employees responded. The center's food pantry was low on supplies and with the holidays approaching, administrators reached out to various state agencies and local churches.

In the break room of each building at General Headquarters, boxes began to fill with canned or dry goods, as the approximately 350 employees at General Headquarters answered a need in their community. In just four days, 36 boxes of food, which filled two pallets, was collected. The food was delivered to the Samaritan Center on Friday, November 2.

"During my 30-year career with the Patrol, I've come to know the caliber of people working for the Patrol," said Col. Keathley. "I feel they are the best employees in state government and the best people within their communities. The response to the Samaritan Center's call for assistance doesn't surprise me. Whether it's a toy drive, a blood drive, or selling Special Olympics T-shirts, Patrol employees continuously show their compassion for others. I am proud to represent these fine employees as superintendent of the Patrol."