Nearly 20 families will meet with Seattle Police at City Hall for a graduation ceremony Saturday to mark the end of an eight-week program designed to build stronger relationships between immigrants and officers.
Armando, 13, plans to attend.
He lives in Seattle's South Park neighborhood. His single mother, Monica, immigrated to Seattle from Mexico in 2011. She signed him up for the police program, partly, because they live in a place that struggles with crime.
"This neighborhood has its pros and cons, mostly cons I guess," said Armando.
"We've got some quality of life issues we are trying to deal with. These are hard issues," said Lt. John Brooks, a 25-year veteran of the Seattle Police Department.
So far this year, a third of Seattle's homicides have happened in the South Park neighborhood, according to city records. Violent assaults have been a concern too.
Seattle Police work with the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs to put on the Immigrant Family Institute. The program was launched in 2017 with 18 young people. This year 21 are participating, including Armando.
City of Seattle's general fund pays approximately $100,000 to run the program.
"This was a real opportunity that is outside of our typical 911 response. It's an opportunity to just talk with people, get to know people," said Brooks. "I think really our real goal is to make people, especially the kids, feel comfortable talking with us and feel like it is a safe thing to approach a Seattle police officer."
"I really came in not knowing what to expect," said Armando.
After eight weeks in the program, he says he already has a new perspective.
"We didn't see them as officers. We saw them as normal people who were just trying to help out the community," said Armando.
Saturday's graduation starts at 11:30 a.m. at Seattle City Hall.
