NEW BLOOMFIELD, Mo. - Bright and early Thursday morning, Callaway County Sheriff Clay Chism put on his badge and uniform and traveled to the New Bloomfield Elementary to chat with the children while they ate breakfast.
He sat down and spoke with them in small groups while they chowed down, asking them about their favorite classes and subjects, and what grades they were in. Five fourth-grade students shared all this information with him until he moved on to the next group.
"Do you know who that was?" the children were asked.
They shook their heads no - except for Robert Schrimp, who knew exactly who Chism was.
"He's the sheriff," he said correctly. "My mother knows him. She was a nurse and when he was running for sheriff, she got to meet him and stuff."
Principal Julie Gerloff said students were visited recently by other first-responders.
"Last week, we had our local fire department and (Chief) Travis Bell and Police Chief (Greg) Mooney come for lunch," she said. "We've had a lot of highway patrolmen come by."
Some kids are initially shy about the uniformed first-responders, but they quickly get past their misgivings, Gerloff said.
"I want the children to see these are just people - safe, reliable people for them to go to if they need help," she added.