NORFOLK, Va. — Police officers respond to hundreds of calls a week ranging from burglaries to homicides.
You see the blue lights whiz by on the highway, but what goes on inside the car is harder to see.
One police chaplain has made it his mission to make sure his officers are okay and is spreading his message through his writing.
"It takes a toll on them," Ronnie Hall said.
Hall joined the Norfolk Police Department as a chaplain in 2020.
"You’re there for a ministry of presence," he said.
Since then, Hall has ridden more than 500 hours with the men and women of the department.
He begins every ride by asking if he can pray with the officers, then asks questions like, 'Where are you from?'
"There’s no better way to get to know your officers than to ride with them," he said.
He’s seen firsthand the trauma and stress officers often go through. So, he decided to write about it.
"It’s about saying thank you to these young men and women," Hall explained.
Reading an excerpt from the book, Hall describes a ride-along experience he vividly remembers.
“He was stabbed multiple times. Two officers responded and they looked like they were in Norfolk General in the trauma room.”
In his self-published book, "500 Hours: A Chaplain’s Ride Along Experience," Hall said certain calls will hit officers like a ton of bricks and it’s his job to act as a support system.
"What would you say are some of the toughest calls that you've responded to?" Halls asked Officer Mackenzie during a ride along 13News Now went on.
"Anything involving kids is tough for me because I have a kid," he responded.
Hall said his role is about more than just sharing his faith.
"During my 500 hours, I didn’t talk about religion a lot," he said. "We’re not there to try to convert them. We’re there for another shoulder they can lean on."
Hall said he never intended to write a book.
"It was those first four rides. The first four rides that I was on."
He said he wanted to pull back the curtain for others.
A traumatic 911 call, an officer-involved shooting, the stress of public scrutiny, warranted or not, Hall said his one duty above all else is this:
"You’re there for those officers in their time of need."
To read more about Chaplain Hall’s 41 ride-along experiences, you can buy his book on Amazon.
