OKEECHOBEE -- “Shop with a Cop” has been a,yearly event in Okeechobee since 2008, and some of the officers who participate say they look forward to it all year. Each year, the schools recommend children and/or families for the program whom they feel would benefit from the help. This year, on Dec. 11 and Dec. 18, local children, along with a parent or guardian, met the law enforcement officers in front of Walmart. Each child was paired up with his or her own deputy from the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office or with an officer from the Okeechobee City  Police Department. The kids got to not only spend $100, but were the most important person in the room to their officer as long for as it took to make up their minds, and sometimes that can be just as important.