Faith in Humanity: Boy gives $1,000 in birthday money to family of fallen officer
Jun 22, 2015, 7:31 PM | Updated: 7:37 pm
Carson Atkins of Hattiesburg, Mississippi isn’t your typical nine-year-old boy.
After requesting donations — opposed to presents — for his birthday party earlier this month, Atkins used the money he raised as a donation to the family of slain police officer Benjamin Deen, who along with his fellow officer Liquori Tate, was killed in the line of duty on May 9.
“It made me feel good because I knew that I was helping someone else,” Atkins said.
In touching display of community spirit, Atkins gave the money — nearly $1,000 — to the fractured family on Father’s Day.
“It caught me off guard,” Carson’s dad, Jonah Atkins, told the Clarion Ledger of his son’s decision. “It’s hard for adults to think that way, much less kids. The world today is filled with me, me, me. [This] is something that is in him. He is very special.”
In an expression of gratitude, the Lamar County Sheriff’s Department decided to surprise Carson by arriving at his party with lights flashing and sirens blaring. Officers gave the boy an array of medals and law enforcement patches, while Deen’s brother, Josh, gave Carson — a baseball-fan — Deen’s baseball card collection.
