Tuesday - “How often do they clean this place?”

In this session, the boys get a deeper look at what it means to carry God's heart for people in leadership & government.

The boys all dressed up in nice clothes for a tour of the magnificent City Hall of Redding, CA. We asked the boys, "What does God say about government? Where do problems come from? Are problems good or bad?" We talked about how problems are really just 'needs' -- they are not good or bad, they're just needs that need action from responsible, loving leaders' whose hearts are to serve the people. God appoints our leaders and we're called to respect their authority, even if we don't agree. (Except of course when bad leadership is telling us to sin.)

After our talk, we were met by our wonderful & extremely knowledgeable tour-guide Jessica Palmer, who brought every corner, door, and stairway to life with her illustrative descriptions of what happens behind the walls of government in Redding. From permitting, to geographical information, to police records & fire chief HQ, the boys were fascinated and asked incredible questions. The tour guide was impressed!

We were met by Cadet Joshua, who introduced us to the behind-the-scenes world of the Redding Police Department. He showed us the offices of the detectives and an interrogation room where we heard about the interviews that take place with their lie detector. The rooms came alive the more we learned about what happened in them.

We walked through the different units and were greeted by almost every officer we met. It was an open, friendly, organized atmosphere.

The highlight of the police tour was seeing the armored bulletproof vehicle. One very kind police captain took the time to let the boys discover the inside and outside of the armored car. Every boy had a smile on his face and felt proud to be on this police truck.

We also got to see a fleet of police cars and motorcycles and got to test the extra headlights of the car use to aim at crime scenes. The boys felt really listened to and seen by the cadet Joshua, who answered each of their questions in great detail.

Before heading back over to City Hall, we almost stepped into an off-limits room 😅 the 'evidence room', but luckily an officer stopped us before we walked in. They were working on a case so we were not allowed to come in. It felt like being in a movie! The room was filled with giant metal shelves filled with random objects of 'evidence' dating back to 1970. The boys got to ask their deep, detailed questions to the officer in charge, which impressed the officer very much and gave the boys great feedback about their interest & intrigue.

We finished our session with a round-table sit-down with Vice Mayor Mark Mezzano who talked to the boys about what it means to be a leader in the city. A leader needs to listen to everybody and make a decision with all their interests in mind. We could see and feel the impressive work that gets done in that decision-making room.

Vice Mayor Mezzano asked the boys about their dreams and chatted with them about how to reach their goals. The boys felt honored to hear from the Vice Mayor of the Redding felt that he really took the time to meet them, answer their questions, and inspire them to be good problem-solvers.

Through this session, the boys grew in confidence as they stepped into the 'grown-up' world. They showed a lot of interest of the world around them and engaged with everyone by asking meaningful questions. They felt welcomed by the world of government and learned a lot about what it means to be a good leader who helps people.

__________________ Meet this session's heroes and partners:

City Hall of Redding | Redding is located in Shasta County, which is home to three incorporated cities – Redding, Anderson and Shasta Lake City. Just 160 miles north of Sacramento and 230 miles north of San Francisco, the county is equidistant between San Diego and Seattle on I-5.

With a population of 94,000, Redding is the largest city north of Sacramento. As the county’s administrative center, Redding is at the forefront of trade and commerce and is a regional hub for retail, education, professional services and government.

https://www.cityofredding.org/homethank

Redding Police Department | The Redding Police Department has always strived for excellence. This professional principle has been the standard of this organization for many years and will continue to be. As the City’s agency responsible for fighting crime and maintaining the beauty and safety of the area, we will continue to strive for the highest possible level of integrity, work ethic and customer service.

Accomplishing our mission of “working in partnership with the community to protect life and property, solve neighborhood problems, and enhance the quality of life in our city” will always be our priority.

https://www.cityofredding.org/departments/police-department

Mark Mezzano | Mark was born in Chicago, Illinois in August 1956. He is the oldest of seven children. While attending Northeastern Illinois University he spent two years as a life guard for the City of Chicago on Lake Michigan. From 1979 to 1983 he worked as a Flight Attendant for United Airlines. He moved to California in 1982 and joined the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in January 1983.Mark was elected to the City Council inNovember 2020 to serve a four-yearterm, and to the Vice Mayor's Office in2022. Read more here: https://www.cityofredding.org/city-council/mark-mezzano