Michigan Police Officer Pulls Over Ice Cream Truck For Young Girl
A major ice cream disaster was successfully avoided in Michigan after a police officer pulled over an ice cream truck for a 3-year-old girl who had just missed its beckoning siren call.
While on patrol, Officer Matthew McPhillips of Chesterfield Township witnessed the look of dismay on young Zain Marcum's face when the truck whizzed by. That's when McPhillips sprang into action.
"The officer just happened to be driving by so he sped up, turned on his lights and stopped her for us and asked her to turn around," said Cathlene Marcum, Zain's mom. "The ice cream truck driver was freaked out. She thought she was getting a ticket."
With the truck stopped, Zain was able to get her fix of screwball with bubble gum, complete with individual ice cream cups and spoon.
It just goes to show that even officers of the law understand how important it is to have a frozen treat at the end of a hot summer's day. And 3-year-olds aren't the only ones who need an ice cream fix; Americans of all ages are obsessed with this frozen treat, whether it comes in a waffle cone or paper ice cream cups.
More ice cream is produced in June than in any other month, and the average American will have some of it around 28.5 times every year. In fact, about 40% of Americans eat ice cream within any given two-week period, any time of year. But while there's never a bad time for frozen desserts, the latest heatwave in Michigan likely has residents clamoring for more.
Zain was playing outside after dinner while her mother ran in to get money for the truck, but they missed it by a hair. With the help of the officer, young Zain learned an important lesson about law enforcement, too.
"A lot of kids think cops only come when you're bad but that's not true," Cathlene said. "They can come and make you happy. What he did teach her more than I could have ever told her."
Officer McPhillips has been with the department for just one year, and was commended by Police Chief Bradley Kersten for his noble deed.
"Officer McPhillips has had a lot of experience with youth guidance and what he did was definitely a teaching moment, definitely a community service moment and an opportunity to make a young girl happy," he said.
