I was recently approached to donate to BLUE H.E.L.P. a charitable organization whose motto is, "Honoring the Service of Law Enforcement Officers Who Died by Suicide."  I said, "Yes,"  and didn't think twice.

I can only speak for myself when I say that the job of being a police officer is very stressful and can be quite depressing. In the past I have tried to explain what I mean to friends, but haven't always been successful. I'll give it one more try here.

Not at their best

As an officer you get to meet a lot of good people, but it's not like you're invited to share their good times, it is usually at their worst time.  When they've been victimized, when they've been in an accident, when they are intoxicated or when they are upset. Good people can act like @ssholes under certain circumstances.

What's wrong?

When firefighters show up at a coffee shop or (in Berkeley) a yogurt shop, you hear comments like, "Oh, they are cute," or "what a cool truck."  When a cop stops to get coffee or something to eat, they often hear, "What's wrong?" and "Why are you here?" Always with the expectation that something is bad.

Shouldn't you be out catching a rapist or doing something important?

I can't tell you how many times I heard the above statement when I was stopping someone for a traffic violation.  Cars can kill and traffic enforcement is important.

What people do to other people is.... inhumane

I know I could have gone my entire life without witnessing some of the horrors I've seen people do to other people. There are some images you can't erase.

Home should be a safe place

When you come to realize that you care more about someone's child than they do.

Vehicular accidents

When heavy vehicles are moving at speed and hit one another, a motorcycle, a bicyclist or a pedestrian, the results can be horrific.

Armchair quarterbacking

Officers have to make decisions, often under stress, in less than ideal circumstances, without all the information and often very quickly.  Someone's life may depend on the decision. Then days, weeks, months later, from the luxury of their office, with all the information that has since become available and 20/20 hindsight, people start to second guess the officer's decision.

Negativity becomes "normal"

When you consistently see the negative in people, when your job is to deal with the problems of society, when you are reading articles where people are second guessing your decisions, you often see negativity as normal.

It adds up

I tell people who express an interest in becoming a law enforcement officer that the job will pull everything out of you.  Any emotions, habits, secrets that you think you've hidden from others will rise to the top over time. It's okay, it's part of being human, just don't be surprised when they show up.

Don't give up hope

I've never had a job that made me feel better or made me feel like I made a difference in others' lives like being a police officer.  To prevent a crime, to help a victim, to save a life all tower over other jobs I've had before and since. It takes a special person who runs towards the sound of gunfire in order to help others, but don't think it doesn't come at a cost.

*We ship for free in the U.S.A. and it is a fantastic deal!  Great, freshly roasted coffee, delivered to your door.  Our coffee not only smells wonderful when it arrives, but it tastes even better, and the best part is that your helping law enforcement families with each purchase.

So, you may have noticed that our prices have gone up.  We hate to do this, but USPS raised rates a few months back and it is more than we can absorb.  

If you search around you find that we sell coffee for the same price as other online sellers, but most don't help our brothers and sisters in blue, and they charge for shipping and it ain't cheap.

As seen on another coffee vendor's site:

I'll help you do the math...

$13.99 for coffee + $5.95 for shipping = $19.94  to your door if you buy from them

Our displayed price is to your door PLUS we help officers and their families who were hurt while doing their job.  We donate to Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S) on each sale.

Help yourself, help those who serve to protect you. Purchase your coffee from THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE.

I ask you, would you rather THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE spend money on advertising, which lines the pockets of ginormous companies, or instead donate the equivalent (or more) to law enforcement fundraisers that directly benefit LEOs? 

My wife worked for a large retail sales company whose claim to fame was customer service.  Competing companies used to advertise on television like crazy, but this company didn't, instead its passion to provide outstanding customer service and offer a legendary, lenient return policy drove sales.

I would like to see THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE have donations drive sales.  Our mission is to support LEOs, so why give money to huge, uncaring companies that promote anti-police content if it helps it sell more advertisement?  I'd like to provide LEO fundraisers with coffee that they can use to raise money instead of spending money on advertisement.

But there is a catch...

Only government can be generous with other people's money. THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE needs sales in order to donate to local LEO charities. 

We exist to help law enforcement officers and their families.

In these trying times when others want to make police look like the 'bad guys,'  the law enforcement community needs to support one another.  I wore blue, I bled blue, I support the blue with every sale. If you or your association drinks coffee, please choose to support the company that supports you and your loved ones.

Email us at customerservice@thinbluelinecoffee.com if you are looking at ways to supply your agency or association with coffee.  We have more options than what appears on this site.

Supporting law enforcement families is the ultimate goal.  

There is a bit of confusion between BRCC Thin Blue Line roast coffee and THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE (TBLC). I'd like to clear up the confusion.

First, let me reiterate: Supporting law enforcement families is the ultimate goal and both BRCC with their thin blue line roast and THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE company support law enforcement families so purchasing either is a good thing.  If your not going to buy from THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE then I would hope you'd buy from BRCC.

So, that is how they are similar, how are they different?

1. Every sale of any product sold from THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE results in a donation to Concerns Of Police Survivors (COPS), a nation-wide law enforcement charity.  You can find them on Charity Navigator.

2. At BRCC, only sales of the thin blue line roast will result in a donation to a law enforcement funding and equipment. If you buy other roasts, there is no donation to law enforcement.

3. At THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE we donate on each sale, not the profit we make. This seems subtle, but it has to do with our goal mentioned above. We make a donation on each sale whether we make money or not on the sale and trust me, sometimes we find ourselves reaching into our own pockets to fulfill our promise.

4. From BRCC's own website, "A portion of the profit from sales of this roast will be donated to provide those in the law enforcement community with life-saving equipment and funding."

5. We include shipping in our price, which is a huge expense...talk about a profit killer.

6. BRCC is a veteran owned company, THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE is a retired police officer owned company. I wore a blue uniform for 18 years until I was retired on a disability.  

7. I included an image that best compares the size of BRCC to THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE.   

8. To match the marketing budget between the two companies, compare the planet to the vacuum surrounding it.

9. THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE will also make the promise that if you order from us and don't like the coffee, we'll give you a refund AND still make the donation to COPS on the sale.

I like BRCC.  I like that they are a veteran owned company and they support law enforcement.  Now that you know how THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE differs from them, you decide how you want to support law enforcement officers and their families.

I'd be honored if you shared this blog with friends, family and colleagues.

This came across my desk and I thought that I'd share...

Police Lip-Sync Challenge  it's a link to a CNET article and videos from various police departments.  Quite entertaining.  

My favorites are the Norfolk Police and Fort Worth Police videos.

Besides raising morale, it can't hurt as a recruitment tool.  More on that later.

Enjoy :-)

We try really hard to keep our message one of hope and caring for those who need assistance, but when looking at the news this morning our collective hearts sank.

2 Deputies in Kansas Are Fatally Shot While Transporting Inmates

Click the link (above) to read the story,  the line highlighted below, which I read on Father's Day, brought me to tears:

"Rohrer, 35, died shortly after the shooting. He had been with the force for seven years and leaves behind two young children, Wyandotte County sheriff's Maj. Kelli Bailiff said. King, 44, died early on Saturday at a hospital. She had three children, including a young one."

No one in those families is having a Happy Father's Day this year...

Our prayers go out to the families, friends and colleagues of these two fallen heros.

Those of you who've ordered from this site know that shipping is always FREE.   

Since we pay for shipping, small orders are costly, which is why we offer 10% off on the “Super Saver – Coffee 3 Pack.”  If a person were to get the super saver and then subscribe to get regular shipments, s/he could save 17.5%!

We now offer a 20% discount + free shipping if a person/group orders 12 or more bags of coffee* at a time. 

 Use code:  BIGHELP

Our desire is to get supporters to re-order on a regular schedule, which is why we offer the subscription plan.  This is how we get consistent sales, which equals consistent donations. We like to describe it as putting your charitable giving on auto-pilot. 

What would be absolutely awesome would be to supply a department or police guild/union’s coffee needs on a regular basis.  It would be symbiotic, one helping the other.  Plus, as those of you who've tried the coffee and as the reviews reflected, it is much better than the coffee they normally provide, which is old and stale.  Our coffee is from a small batch, gourmet roaster and it is literally hours to days old when it is sent.  So good coffee – great cause, LEOs and friends helping LEO families.

*The discount only works on coffee orders.

Concerns of Police Survivors, C.O.P.S., began a capital campaign to increase their facilities to match the growing need of assistance caused by the increase in random violence towards officers.  Their capital campaign included two fundraisers, the "Road to Hope" and the "Garden of Hope."  With help from all of you, THIN BLUE LINE COFFEE was able to purchase a paver in the Garden of Hope. We know that C.O.P.S. will use the money to help as many survivors as possible. It also saddens us to think that the need for help has grown.

Thank you all for your support.