Every year, the Law Enforcement Assistance Fund (LEAF) gives out $30,000 in scholarships to deserving immediate family members of PPA members. These scholarships are paid for out of the LEAF account and not the PPA account. This year’s scholarships were presented at the annual Police vs. Fire charity tackle football game. We would like to continue this tradition and again present the scholarships at next year’s game. I would like to explain the criteria to be eligible for a LEAF scholarship so there is no confusion.

To be eligible to receive a LEAF scholarship, the recipient must be an immediate family member of a PPA member who donates recurring payroll deductions to the Law Enforcement Assistance Fund. The recipient also must be a high school senior heading into college or a trade school. For your family member be eligible for next year’s scholarships, you have to be donating to LEAF by the cutoff date of July 31, 2023. So, if you are reading this article, there is probably still time to donate. To do so, please fill out the LVMPD Payroll recurring deductions form under the “Law Enforcement Assistance Fund” slot, making sure you check the “Recurring” box. Then email or thousand-mile it back to Payroll. If you have any questions on how to do this, please reach out to me.

I get a lot of questions from our members who are unfamiliar with what LEAF is and what it does. Well, the Law Enforcement Assistance Fund is a charity that is run by the PPA. LEAF’s main goal is to financially support the children of our fallen officers throughout college. The Fund pays for the college tuition, room and board, books and fees of the children of PPA members who are killed in the line of duty. The fund also pays for birthday, Christmas and graduation presents until these children are 18 years old. 

Recently we have been exploring different revenue streams to financially strengthen this fund, with the main goal of being able to pay off the mortgages of any future fallen officers who are killed in the line of duty. I pray we will never have another officer killed in the line of duty again, but if we do, it is my goal to be able to relieve that financial stress for their family. Between increasing funding through recurring payroll deductions, the Police vs. Fire football game and our generous corporate donors, I believe we will be able to meet our goal in just a few years. 

If you would like to know more about the Law Enforcement Assistance Fund or how to donate, please reach out to me.