WAPAKONETA, OH (WLIO) - The Wapakoneta Breakfast Optimist Club painted their support for police in the heart of the city.
Optimists spent a few hours Sunday afternoon painting a thin blue line in the center of Auglaize Street downtown. The line was first painted in 2020, and the club plans to continue repainting it as needed so that visitors, residents, and officers have a permanent reminder about how the community feels about their local law enforcement. They have a difficult and stressful job, so the Optimists wanted to do something positive to thank them for that work.
"I have had conversations with police officers that say that they see that blue line, and that reminds them that they are valued here, and we want them here, and that we appreciate the job that they do. Being a police officer—that's one of those jobs that the rest of us really don't want to do. And we think we need to show them that we appreciate the fact that they're here and they're helping keep our streets safe for us," said Wapakoneta Breakfast Optimist Club member and project chair, Todd Meier.
The club also runs the Avenue of Flags program, where they set out American flags for several holidays a year to show the community's support for veterans.
