Photo by Mike Brothers
Which animal do I want? 22 month old McKinzie Ray asks as she sifts through the bag of stuffed animals offered free to children visiting the Moultrie County Courthouse. McKinzie was accompanying her mother Autumn Ray of Sullivan who was in the courthouse paying real estate taxes.

Employees show generosity

•September 19, 2018•

Children visiting the Moultrie County Courthouse are getting free stuffed animals thanks to the generosity of those working in the county offices.
Funds collected on blue jean Fridays is helping finance a new program by courthouse security aimed at helping children feel a little more comfortable in a large public place.
“When these kids come in, they don’t know what to think,” courthouse deputy John Love began. “They see a guy in a uniform and a badge and it scares the little ones.”
He noted that sometimes the children are there with parents who have to wait for court proceedings, and it can be a test of patience to be stuck in a strange place for a long time.
Love recalled when he was chief of police in Sullivan, children waiting at the station could receive a toy from Secret Santa to give them something to occupy themselves during the wait.     Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.