WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. — A retired Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office sergeant is using his photography skills to share the stories of law enforcement officers from across the country.
“I worked with so many people that do so many great things,” Charlie Simmons said. “There are so many great stories out there.”
Simmons’ work began with documenting his colleagues in Jeffco. He showed off some of his photography at an event in Wheat Ridge on Sunday – and soon, he’ll be doing the same thing across the country.
He started his nonprofit Badges Across America last year, and he and his wife are hitting the road in an Airstream camper next week to work with agencies to shoot images and tell the stories of officers to humanize them to the people they serve.
“I just want to take that side of them, and show the personal side of the cop,” Simmons said. “They’re family members. They’re fathers, sons, daughters, mothers, wives, grandparents.
“There’s just a wide profile and everybody just kind of narrows it down to a person wearing a badge. I want to break that mold and tell a different side of the story.”
Simmons will donate the images he shoots to the agencies he works with.
You can see them on Badges Across America’s Facebook page: https://bit.ly/2Z8Xn2B
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