Pizza patrol
SOS serves up appreciation
-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen Serving Our Servants member Dave Buenting gives Iowa State Patrol trooper Matt Eimers an SOS hat Tuesday afternoon as the troopers enjoy pizza courtesy of SOS.
-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Wes Niles, at left, along with District 7 secretary Pam Crouch, set out pizzas Tuesday afternoon brought to the station by the Serving Our Servants group. The troopers and a group of Iowa Department of Transportation workers enjoyed the noon meal.
-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen Serving Our Servants member Dave Buenting gives Iowa State Patrol trooper Matt Eimers an SOS hat Tuesday afternoon as the troopers enjoy pizza courtesy of SOS.
-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Wes Niles, at left, along with District 7 secretary Pam Crouch, set out pizzas Tuesday afternoon brought to the station by the Serving Our Servants group. The troopers and a group of Iowa Department of Transportation workers enjoyed the noon meal.
Trending
Most of the Iowa State Patrol troopers serving in District 7, along with a group of Iowa Department of Transportation workers, got a tasty treat for lunch Tuesday thanks to the efforts of Serving Our Servants.
Members of locally-based SOS delivered more than a dozen pizzas from Marco's Pizza, a homemade cake and a plate of brownies.
In addition to the food, SOS member Dave Buenting, of Fort Dodge, brought along a Santa's bag full of warm stocking caps with the SOS logo for the troopers.
Buenting was inspired when he saw a sample hat during one of the group's meetings.
"I said I'd like to buy 25 of those and give them to the troopers," Buenting said.
While the troopers won't be able to wear the hats while on duty, they will be able to make good use of them during their off hours.
Bringing a gift for the troopers has become something of an annual tradition for Buenting.
"I did a little bit of something before," he said. "Last year it was flashlights and the first year it was huge soup cups."
Buenting has been a member of SOS since the group was formed about three years ago. Much of his inspiration comes from the loss of Rockwell City Police Officer Jamie Buenting, who was his nephew.
The Rev. Al Henderson, the pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church, helped start the SOS group.
He said the tradition of bringing pizza to members of the law enforcement community began with breakfast.
Literally.
"It began with the notion of breakfast pizza for the officers," Henderson said.
It then expanded to include the fire and emergency medical service workers. He said the events were carefully timed so that nearly all the members of both the Fort Dodge Fire Department and the paramedics at UnityPoint Health -- Trinity Regional Medical Center got pizza.
The troopers are one of the most difficult groups to feed.
"The troopers have different schedules," he said. "Some of them might spend their whole shift on I-35."
On Tuesday, that problem was neatly solved by a District 7-wide meeting.
"When they have a district meeting," he said, "it's very well attended."
Henderson is grateful for the support the SOS group has gotten from the public as it's grown in scope and size. That includes more frequent pizza days.
"With people's support," Henderson said, "we're able to do it more often."