CAMAS — The Camas Police Department shared in the school spirit at a recent Friday night football game at Camas High School, bringing along its newly restriped, Papermakers-themed patrol vehicle.
Sgt. Scot Boyles said Camas Mayor Scott Higgins saw a police car in another town with school-spirit colors, and Higgins shared the idea with the department.
The department school resource officer was slated to get a Chevy Tahoe patrol vehicle, and the SUV was due for the restriping so it could go on patrol.
It was already in the budget, so why not use Camas High’s red and black and the Papermakers’ “C” instead of the department’s usual silver-and-blue motif?
“This is just kind of a fun, no-cost way to outstretch our hands, not only to the school district but the students, and let them know we’re approachable and we support them,” Boyles said.
Boyles didn’t know exactly what the striping cost, but said the package for the other patrol cars was around $500.
Tim Fellows, the Camas School District school resource officer for the past three years, works out of Camas High School and covers the district’s 10 schools. The car has had the new colors for a few weeks, and Fellows said that he’s seen a great response from the district and students.
Fellows said he recently drove past a group of physical education students at an intersection near Liberty Middle School, and the new patrol vehicle turned heads.
“As they were crossing (the street), they were applauding, the whole class, like, 40, 50 of them, thumbs up, smiles, waving,” Fellows said. “It’s an eye-catcher.”
Boyles said he was a little resistant to the change at first — being the officer who used to be in charge of the department’s vehicle fleet can turn one into a bit of a control freak, he said — but he came around quickly.
Previously, the Tahoe served as a supervisor’s vehicle and was used by the department’s sergeants, Boyles said. It’s outfitted like any of the department’s other patrol cars, save the soft back seat.
Fellows joked that whenever he has to arrest someone, it’s actually kind of a treat that they don’t get the hard-backed, single-piece seat common in most police cars.
No one’s really been too surprised to get pulled over in a patrol car with Papermakers colors, he said.
“Nobody’s said anything. In fact, the only thing they’ve said is, ‘Wow, I like your new car,’ ” Fellows said.
Andy Matarrese: 360-735-4457; andy.matarrese@columbian.com; twitter.com/andy_matter
