Gainesville police officers were recently recognized for reaching out across the community, especially to Hispanic residents.

The U.S. Christian Chaplain Association honored the department at its 2010 National Convention in Atlanta for "diligent work within the Hispanic community," said Andres Mora, the national coordinator for this year's convention.

"We have a lot of chapters that reach out to the Hispanic community, and when we stayed for two or three weeks in Gainesville, we talked to a lot of different pastors and churches, and they all said the police department does a great job," Mora said. "The officers work hard to understand the Spanish-speaking people, and the people work with the officers. The officers really try to make it part of their jobs."

Officers Kevin Holbrook and Joe Britte, the crime prevention staff for the Gainesville Police Department, both speak English and Spanish and boost crime prevention in the community by putting on bilingual health and safety fairs, speaking to congregations and spreading conversation about police department programs.

"We speak to a lot of people, especially after the 287g immigration policy happened," said Britte, who was recognized as 2009 Officer of the Year by the U.S. Christian Chaplain Association for his work with the Hispanic community in Gainesville.

"It's not our responsibility as a police department to implement (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) issues, but we do enforce the laws of Georgia," Britte said.

"What happens in jail is beyond our control, but we like to dispel myths about what the police department does."

Holbrook and Britte also promote safety events for children and build up neighborhood watch programs, which currently include 10 in Hispanic communities around Gainesville.

"We translate in English and Spanish what the concept of a neighborhood watch is, with protecting your property and kids and forming that bond with your neighbors to make the area safer to live," Britte said. "With people in different subdivisions and government housing looking out, we're able to spread that crime prevention aspect."

At other informational events, officers pass out pamphlets on identity theft, workplace violence and self defense.

"We feel it's important to reach all cultures, and of course here in Gainesville that's predominantly Hispanic," Britte said. "Knowing a lot of the key players helps us to reach out to churches, business owners and employees that need assistance. We can make (them) aware of crime or personal safety issues they probably couldn't get in English but we can provide those translated documents."

The national recognition leads to even more ideas for the future, he said.

"We're very happy about the award, but our efforts don't stop. We're trying to find new and innovative ways to reach out as public servants," Britte said. "Other officers and investigators are bilingual, and more are becoming bilingual. We want to do everything in our power to keep everybody in the community in tune and safe."