Donated vests presented to Fremont County deputies

In September, KRDO13 once again partnered with Shield 616 to raise money to purchase rifle-rated protective gear for deputies in Fremont County. 

Wednesday, that gear was officially handed over at a special presentation at the Cotopaxi Community Church. 

Thanks to the donations that came in during the telethon, at least 20 deputies in Fremont County will now be better protected against deadly force.

While the potentially life-saving gear can stand up to much more firepower than the typical department-issued protection can handle, it's also meant to be worn anytime the deputies are on duty. 

“So they don't have to put on another vest, they don't have to 'armor up',” explained Shield 616 Founder and President Jake Skifstad, “They're literally going to have rifle-rated protection wearing it all day long on every single call, every single traffic stop.  It is just protecting them to the highest level.” 

Skifstad hopes that along with the gear itself, the deputies take home a renewed feeling that Fremont County is behind them. 

“They put their lives on the line every day,” says Steve Holcomb, the pastor at the small church, “Not just our church, but people in the whole county, they are really for this thing.  We're really thankful for that.” 

It's especially encouraging to Sheriff Allen Cooper, who believes Fremont County is the best place in the state to be a law enforcement officers, based on his meetings with other sheriffs around Colorado. 

Even if the deputies never have to actually put their gear the test, it allows them to be more confident when walking into potentially dangerous situations. 

“To have that protection, and knowing that ‘I've got the best protection on’, hopefully that's going to allow for them to go toward that danger, toward that threat, knowing hopefully they're going to be protecting while they're trying to protect their community,” says Skifstad. 

Anyone in a community that would like to work with Shield616 to raise money for their emergency responders is encouraged to visit Shield616.org for more information.