ST. LOUIS – For the 28^th year, the IBEW/NECA Electrical Connection partnership is supporting the St. Francois County “Shop with a Cop” program, one of the largest in the nation.  The partnership again donated $5,000 to the law enforcement holiday giving program serving more than 500 children.  The donation was used to help law enforcement and first responders take children holiday shopping for gifts they would not otherwise receive.  The Electrical Connection is a partnership of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1 and the St. Louis Chapter, National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA).

“Shop with a Cop embodies the tight knit community that defines Farmington and St. Francois County,” noted Danny Miller, COO of Total Electric, a NECA contractor.  It was Miller who first engaged the Electrical Connection in 1995 in the St. Francois County “Shop with a Cop” program.  Total Electric has supported the program for 30 years since its inception. “It endures and has grown not only because it brightens the holidays for children, but it has also been an effective law enforcement trust-building program.”

Left to right, Missouri State Representative Mike Henderson, Total Electric COO Danny Miller, St. Francois County Sheriff Dan Bullock, IBEW Local 1 Business Representative Lee Asher, and IBEW/NECA Electrical Connection Executive Vice President Tim Green. 

On the morning of December 19, 2023, the first of 15 busses of children pulled up at the Wal-Mart in Farmington, Mo. where law enforcement and first responders from throughout the state were paired with children to shop for gifts.  Fox 2 was there to cover the event.

“In many cases, officers will dig a little in their own pockets to add to the donations used to buy the gifts,” said Dan Bullock, St. Francois County Sheriff.  “The IBEW/NECA partnership’s unwavering support for our Shop with a Cop program is greatly appreciated.” To date, the Electrical Connection has donated $94,000 to support the St. Francois County “Shop with a Cop”

“We live and work in countless communities throughout eastern Missouri,” noted Frank Jacobs, business manager, IBEW. “Our service goes beyond the construction and maintenance of electrical and communication technology infrastructure. Programs like ‘Shop with a Cop’ allow us to support the less fortunate in the communities we serve.”

The Electrical Connection represents more than 130 IBEW-signatory electrical contractors and more than 5,000 highly skilled IBEW electricians and communication technicians.  Members of the Electrical Connection provide safe and reliable electrical construction, maintenance, repair and replacement services across Missouri, the nation and the world.  For more information visit www.electricalconnection.org.