Sgt. Jody Chansler with the Fort Dodge Police Department believes in always doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.

“Just helping people that are down on their luck or they just need a hand, it’s just so easy to do and I wish more people would do that,” he said. “This would be a whole better world if everyone would just help each other out.”

Sometimes, someone is watching when you’re doing the right thing. In fact, someone was watching on Monday afternoon when Chansler and fellow Officer Nathan Wolfe assisted a woman having a hard time with the heat.

Laina Hoover, of Fort Dodge, was driving near the intersection of Fifth Avenue South and South 21st Street when she saw the two officers helping the woman, who was not identified.

“It’s always nice to know that there’s somebody there that went beyond what they have to do,” Hoover said of witnessing the interaction.

Chansler said someone had called the Webster County Telecommunications Center concerned about the woman because she was sitting on the curb, leaning against the light pole and had her head down, so they worried something was wrong.

Chansler and Wolfe arrived to check on her.

“I get there and introduce myself to her and sit down with her on the sidewalk,” Chansler said. The woman was very hot and had been walking across town with her two small dogs. She didn’t have a car and was trying to get downtown to look at an apartment to rent, the sergeant said.

“As we sat there and I asked her about her life, I offered her water,” Chansler said. “I went over to CVS and I bought her some water and I bought the dogs some dog treats.”

After ensuring that the woman was OK, Chansler and Wolfe gave her a ride to the apartment building she had been heading toward.

It was a small part of the officers’ shifts, but the impact is immeasurable and Chansler encourages everyone to step up whenever they see someone else in need.

“Just when you see a person who needs help, help them,” he said. “The simple act of introducing yourself and saying, ‘Hey, is there anything I can do?’ They may not need help, but that goes a long way.”