Clarksdale resident Shirley Fair cooked a lot of food Sunday and saw an opportunity to show appreciation to the police department for everything they do.
Fair, a local businesswoman for 43 years, owned Fair’s Restaurant with her husband, the late Lawrence Fair, at one time continued to cook regularly.
She said the Clarksdale and the police department have seen their share of violence and tough times and she wanted to make their day better.
“I had cooked a lot of food, Sunday dinners, yesterday and I decided I had a lot of food left over and I thought that I would just go prepare some over and feed the police department,” Fair said. “Because I cook a big dinner every Sunday.”
Fair pointed to the rise in crime and how police are called on to deal with a lot of negative and demanding things.
“They put their life on the line all the time,” she explained. “If I could just do something, it didn’t have to be a holiday, it just had to be a good day and today is a good day.”
Fair had 25 to 30 plates of food. The meals included fried chicken, stuffing with gravy, cut green beans with white potatoes, whole colonel corn with cream sauce, biscuits from Popeyes, Hawaiian rolls, apple cobbler and blue lemonade. Most of the food was cooked from scratch.
“I’m very grateful for Ms. Fair, what she’s done here today, providing lunch for the Clarksdale Police Department, showing her appreciation for what the officers do every day,” said Clarksdale police chief Robbie Linley. “I’m very thankful for her showing that appreciation. Police officers a lot of times don’t get the thanks and appreciation they deserve.
“It definitely helps morale because it shows there are citizens who are behind us and do support us as a department.”
Linley not only enjoyed the food, he felt it would help officers do their jobs.
“I think it’s very good,” Linley said. “It’s very tasty. It’s very good.
Assistant police chief Norman Starks concurred.
“It’s awesome,” Starks said. “That’s the only thing I’m going to say. It hit the spot just right.
“Everything is good, the mixture between the veggies and the chicken and the chicken and dressing has just prepared us for Thanksgiving.”
Sgt. Raymond Hill was glad the police department was appreciated.
“We definitely appreciate her for coming up and doing this for us,” Hill said. “It’s always good to be appreciated.
Fair acknowledged local entities provide meals, but said the police department gets overlooked.
“Nobody thinks of the police department,” she added. “They’re doing a great job. For what they’ve got to work with, they’re doing a great job.”
