Charles Crane/MDN Jar + Cone co-owners Matthew Maldonado, far left, and Eric Thoemke, far right, pose with Minot Police Officers Sarah Kiss, Andrew Hess, Seth Labodda, Jordan Boswell and Amanda Sommerville outside The Putt District downtown in announcing a partnership for the Minot Police Department’s “I Got Caught” summer safety program.

The Minot Police Department has announced the return of the “I Got Caught” summer safety program, which rewards local youth who are seen wearing safety helmets while riding bikes, skateboards, scooters or rollerblades.

“The prior campaign always brought a little fun to patrol in the summertime,” Capt. Justin Sundheim said. “It’s fun to see the smile on a kid’s face when an officer catches them wearing their helmets and gives them their ‘I Got Caught’ citation. Honestly, some of the biggest smiles are from our officers.”

With the discontinuation of the national program sponsored by AAA, the police department desired to continue the program through a partnership with Jar+Cone, an ice-cream shop located in downtown Minot.

“We are grateful to Eric and his team at Jar+Cone for their invaluable support in making this program a reality at the local level,” said T Kvigne, Public Safety Information and Outreach officer for the City of Minot. “Jar+Cone is generously providing free ice cream to children our officers spot wearing safety helmets this summer, further reinforcing our community’s commitment to safety.”