By Morgan Bryce
Associate Editor

The annual “Cops on Top” fundraiser to promote and benefit the Lee County Special Olympics will be held April 13 at Kroger in Tiger Town.
From 8 a.m. – 8 p.m., sponsored members of the Opelika Police Department and Lee County Sheriff’s Department will stand on top of the entrance to the grocery store, with a goal of shattering the nearly $7,900 raised from last year’s event.
Proceeds from this year’s fundraiser will be used to cover the overall costs of attending both the Alabama and national Special Olympic Games, which will be held in Seattle this summer.
“Every year, these dollars go to local travel, travel to our state games in Troy, where they stay three nights. We take nearly 40 athletes to state, which always presents us with (financial) needs,” said Mary Katherine Pittman, LCSO intern and event organizer. “We are sending 15-20 athletes from Lee County to Seattle for the national games, which they hold every four years. So, some of those dollars raised will be used to cover airfare, hotel fees, food (and) cost of transportation for a trip that will be a week long.”
OPD Capt. Bobby Kilgore said the department chooses to assist LCSO because of the joy and opportunities given to children with special needs.
“This is one of their biggest fundraisers of the year, so they really depend on these donations to keep doing this good work that they do. It’s such a worthwhile cause, and that’s why we partner with them,” Kilgore said.
Officers from Auburn’s Police Department will also participate in the event, standing on the roof of the Auburn Kroger, which is located on North Dean Road.
For more information on the event, visit the LCSO Facebook page, or call Director Elizabeth Kaufman at 334-501-2939.