They got to indulge in a few scoops of ice cream, try on police gear, and get a cool ice cream tattoo.

Having a cone with a cop was the icing on the cake for Lehighton youths on Thursday.

Officers from the Lehighton Borough Police Department were at Corner Cone at Mahoning and Eighth streets for the Ice Cream with a Cop event.

As part of the event, the community was invited to come out and meet the officers and see department equipment.

There was free facepainting, ice cream tattoos, raffles for school supplies, Zimmerman’s Iced Tea and vouchers given to the first 100 children for a free kid’s ice cream cone.

Abriella Peralta-Roman of Lehighton said she was excited to be at the event.

“I’m having a lot of fun,” said Abriella, 10. “The police gear was heavy.”

Her mother, Jari Roman-Snyder, of Lehighton, said she was glad to be able to bring Abriella out to the event.

“I love the outreach; the kids need to get comfortable with the police officers,“ Roman-Snyder said. “It’s positive outreach for the community.”

Abriella’s stepfather, Corey Snyder, of Lehighton, agreed and added that children shouldn’t be scared of the police officers.

Sarena Gray watched as her son, Callen Gray, 7, of Lehighton, had his face painted by Levi McCullion, 15, who said he was there to help his mother, Pam McCullion, run the event.

“It’s nice for them to learn what the police teach and they do and the things they use,” Sarena Gray said. “They all have a good time and have some fun.”

Borough police Chief Troy Abelovsky said events such as these help build trust among the community and police officers.

“We had a fabulous turnout, about 150 people within the first hour,” Abelovsky said. “We enjoy being out and interacting with the community.”

Lights On Lehighton

The Ice Cream with a Cop was the second community interactive event the borough police department held this week.

On Tuesday, the police department conducted its first community event titled, Lights On Lehighton.

The event was designed to have officers out and directly engaged with the community, Abelovsky said.

While its start time was slightly delayed and the Carbon County Sheriff’s Department was unable to attend, Abelovsky said they still tried to make the best of it.

He said officers interacted with borough residents, but added that due to continuous call volume, they only had one unit to engage with the community.

Despite that, Abelovsky said police still handed out over 100 freeze pops, 30 bottles of water and department swag to the kids and families.

“We discussed issues concerning the community with residents and promoted our upcoming events,” he said. “It was a crazy evening, but we hope the community enjoyed the personal interactions.

“We unfortunately could not get everywhere in the borough, but we appreciate all the community support, and the positive feedback received on the event.”

Through community outreach, Abelovsky said he hopes to promote safe and trusting relationships with the community, and to teach kids that the police are their friends and will be there to help whenever and wherever they should be in need.

Lehighton Police Night Out

Despite holding two events this week, Abelovsky said the department isn’t done as the Lehighton Police Night Out event will be held Oct. 7 at Baer Memorial Park.

Abelovsky said it will be an evening filled with much to do, including fun and games, music, giveaways, contests, demonstrations and information on many local agencies, organizations and businesses that enhance the community.

“We want to make a positive impression,” he said.