OKEECHOBEE - Okeechobee County Sheriff's Deputy Brandon Greis took a little time out of his day to spend  time with some local children. Greis was patrolling in the Douglas Park area on Sunday afternoon when he spotted these children playing basketball. Because it was not a busy day, he was able to stop and have a little fun with them. HAfter a game of basketball, he showed them his patrol car and gave them each a stuffed animal he carries in his trunk for occassions such as this. The animals were donated by people in the community for this reason.

This is not the first time Greis has stopped to make friends with children.  "He saw an opportunity to go out and speak to the kids and show them the positive side of a deputy and that there’s no reason to be afraid," said OCSO PIO Michele Bell.