3 Toms River Police Stories To Make You Smile

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Toms River Police Department receives hundreds of phone calls every day from people needing assistance throughout the town.

While a fair number of those are for crimes and medical emergencies, there are other smaller moments that often go largely unnoticed.

Here are three recent situations where Toms River police helped residents that deserve praise.

BRAIN BUDDIES

The department's Operation Brain Freeze has been busy all summer, with police officers handing out coupons for free ice cream to kids all over town to reinforce the positive behavior of wearing helmets while biking or skateboarding. But not all kids have helmets, as Officers Samantha Sutter and Joe Mastronardy found out. When they encountered three youngsters who were not wearing bicycle helmets because they didn’t have them, they had the solution: they picked up helmets for all three children. And then they gave them Operation Brain Freeze tickets for (now) riding safely.

Sweet!

STEADY AS SHE GOES

When a family's boat engine conked out and left them adrift off Shelter Cove Beach, they called Toms River police for a helping hand to get back to the dock. No one was injured, but for a pair of young girls on the boat, the situation was a bit scary. So Officer John Mehl jumped into the water and walked out to the boat to comfort the two crying girls while they waited for the department's Marine 1 Unit to arrive. Lt. Michael Miller, Officer Thomas Herbst and Officer Graham Borg then assisted the family in getting the boat back to shore.

FRIENDS IN DEED

A Toms River man found himself in a difficult spot while out walking his St. Bernard, Lola, one evening earlier this month. Lola's back legs gave out, and at 115 pounds, trying to help her home by himself would have been painful for Lola. When Officer Vic Tamaro arrived and saw the situation, he called Silverton EMS for their assistance with a Reeves stretcher to lift Lola. Tamaro and Silverton EMTs Jarrett Jirak and Brett Kyle then carried her a half-mile back to her home. Police said Lola was seen by her vet the next day and appears to be recovering well.

Here's another photo of happy kids from Operation Brain Freeze:

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