National Police Association Podcast with Guest, Daniel Marquardt, President of the Nonprofit We Love Police Inc.
Hi, this is Sergeant Betsy Brantner Smith at the National Police Association, and this is the National Police Association podcast. I have with me today a guest who a good friend of mine said, you gotta talk to this guy because he's doing some amazing work for law enforcement in this country. He's a busy guy. He's a dad. He's a business owner, And he's from my native Illinois, and he's doing something so extraordinary that I knew that you had to meet him.
Betsy Smith:Dan Marquardt, welcome to the show.
Daniel Marquardt:Thank you so much, Betsy. It's an honor to be here.
Betsy Smith:So Dan, you got 10 kids, you got a business, you're a really busy guy, but in 2021, you decided that you just really didn't need to sleep anymore and you thought you'd start your own nonprofit. And as a guy who appreciates law enforcement, as a man of faith, in 2021, started an organization called We Love Police. Talk about that.
Daniel Marquardt:Yeah, it was really something that I was called to start. And we, back in the Travon Martin era, we actually were so, I was so burdened by what police in America were dealing with and the demonization and all the hardships and the lack of support and the media skew. And, and I just said, we got to do something. So we actually hosted back then, we hosted an event. We just said a thank you police event.
Daniel Marquardt:We had officers and spouses here at my business, and we had a motivational speaker who everyone knew at the time. And it was just a great event. And I had so many moving comments from officers that, about that event. So I just said, Wow, we gotta do this again. And then with the busyness of life, it went on the shelf.
Daniel Marquardt:And so anyhow, We Love Police really, as I said, was a calling and something that I had this vision, wanted to start, wanted to see it become reality. And, with the busyness of life, it went on the shelf. And then fast forward to 2021 and everything that was happening with the defund police and all the riots and all of the craziness. And I just said, I was just so convicted. And I just I just literally said, I prayed and I said, you know, Lord, I don't wanna be like Jonah.
Daniel Marquardt:If you've called me to this, I don't wanna run the other way. And I wanna be faithful. You'll provide the resources and the time, and the vision and, to to make this a reality. So, and he has, and I'm super grateful for that. So yeah, in 2021, we became a 501c3.
Daniel Marquardt:And it's been a long journey of patience. But just last month, we actually launched our social media campaign nationwide, or I should say actually back in April. But the core of our organization is uplifting police and spotlighting their good. Two things that, as you know very well, are desperately needed needed in America.
Betsy Smith:So let's talk about that because in 2021, in the Chicago Metropolitan Area, the police were not very popular. And you own a business, you're a car dealer, and back then that's when businesses were posting the black square on their social media and talking about how bad the police were and everything was just going woke and going crazy anti police, and frankly anti American. And you decided to really swim upstream with all of that, marrying your mission with your Christian faith. Talk about that.
Daniel Marquardt:Absolutely. Well, and you know, when God calls you to do something, it's always best to be faithful. You don't want to run the other way. And, you know, it's heartbreaking to see what our police officers and their families have endured. And so, yeah, at the end of the day, we should, and as Christians, walk by faith and not by sight.
Daniel Marquardt:And that's easier said than done. But but the reality is, you know, I I was compelled to do this. And so even we operate out of our out of my dealership, out of my business. And so I had a lot of warnings from a lot of police officer friends about, you know, some of the hostiles, we'll say, and having our address published and could expect protesters and other things out here. But, you know, we've been we've been we've got a great relationship with our local police department, and they really love and appreciate us and the feeling's mutual.
Daniel Marquardt:And thankfully, we have not endured that. But we do know, just as police see every day in America, everything in this world is a battle of good versus evil. It just truly is. And so, you know, I love a line from an officer who said, you know, when evil wins, when good does nothing at all. And, you know, so we want to be a vessel to spotlight the countless good of our police officers in America every day.
Daniel Marquardt:And sadly, most of it gets untold. Or if it is told, it's in a very, very small bubble. So, yeah, so I'm very excited about all of the facets. And throughout that journey over the last few years, how we've refined our vision and our mission for a greater impact, I'm super excited to see it all unfold and the impact that it makes to be a blessing to officers and their families.
Betsy Smith:So let's talk about the different facets of what you're doing, starting with your original vision, which was just to have a nice banquet and a speaker, an event for cops to go to just to be appreciated and uplifted and also something they could bring their families to.
Daniel Marquardt:Absolutely. Well, that we realized was phenomenal. I was so humbled and frankly tearful when, at the comments that officers and spouses of officers made to me during that event, after that event, the letters, that I received in the mail were so touching. And I had several officers tell me that they were thinking about hanging up their hat, and that that event put enough wind in their sails to inspire them and encourage them to keep moving forward. So it was just a really tangible way where officers, you could see what a blessing it was to them.
Daniel Marquardt:And so so, yeah, we that and that will continue to be a facet of what we do. We look forward to eventually, obviously, it's based on resources, but we would love to host regional banquets, even get to a point of doing one a month around the country where we have a motivational speaker and an officer, spouse and or guest, and they come, have a nice dinner, open bar, motivational speaker and then recognition awards for our Wheel of Police honorees for different acts of heroism or nominations from different officers around the country in that in that region. So we look forward to doing that. But that then branched into understanding the needs of what officers shoulder every day. I mean, what they see, what they process.
Daniel Marquardt:You can't unsee what you see. And I know they all know that. And so I was stunned when we did market research and found that roughly our data showed over 1 of officers around the country did not have access to a chaplain at their police department. I've talked to others in national leadership roles, and they've shared with me they think it's closer to 50%. And whatever that number is, whether it's 33% or 50%, a significant percentage do not have access to a chaplain.
Daniel Marquardt:But what was really disturbing from our market research, two thirds of the officers that had access to a chaplain had a low trust to no trust of their department chaplain. And there were a whole litany of reasons, all of them valid. And so we worked with an organization to and it was right in that COVID window, where, and it worked out beautifully, because they were looking for a way to provide more accessible, confidential chaplain access. And I, when I shared with their CFO what our vision was for Wheel of Police, we love it. Let's develop this together.
Daniel Marquardt:So we've created a portal to offer, and we offer it on our website, mobile or web or PC based, 20 fourseven nationwide access to real human beings, to chaplains, specially trained chaplains, for not just police officers, but their families, so spouses. So, and that was another thing that stunned us from our market research. 97, so of the small percentage of officers that had trust of a chaplain, off, that had access to a chaplain, that trusted their chaplain, of those that used it, 97 said their spouse had never been uplifted or ministered to by their department chaplain. And I just feel that's a huge travesty. So we wanted to provide a resource where not just the officers, but their family members, whenever they have a burden, whether it's marital strife, emotional toil, whatever that is they're dealing with, or if they just need prayer, if they just need support, if they need to just talk something through, that that access is there for them twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, and however they want on their own terms.
Daniel Marquardt:They can access the chaplain by instant messaging if they don't want to talk. They can call. They can even schedule a video chat with the chaplain. And if it's a crisis situation, our chaplain organization, our partner, actually has chaplains on the ground in almost every major metro market America. So even if it's a one on one meet, they can do that too.
Daniel Marquardt:So that's a huge need that's out there right now. And I'm super excited for it to be utilized a whole lot more. But officers in and their family need to know that this is available to them.
Betsy Smith:Well, Just knowing that someone is praying for you, and I know this from personal experience, you know, being out there, it's two in the morning, horrible stuff's happening on patrol and this and that. Just knowing that you have a chaplain or a church body praying for you is just so extraordinary. And then being able to get your family involved and the fantastic use of technology. Again, back in the 90s and the early 2000s, had to find time to go see somebody, then you had to find somebody to go see. And like you said, cops tend to be very distrustful of mental health professionals, sometimes of chaplains, especially if they're associated with the department.
Betsy Smith:Because when we're talking about police mental health, there's a lot of cops that have been frankly abused by their agencies, by the mental health professionals that were supposed to be helping them. And then when you talk about families, know, like you, you're a business owner and a dad, that whole situation is a team effort, right? Know, you and your wife. And it's the same thing in law enforcement. Being a cop, whether it's the husband or the wife, sometimes it's both, and it's a real team effort to just keep it together.
Betsy Smith:And so bringing the families was that's extraordinary foresight on your part.
Daniel Marquardt:Well, and we know that the spouses shoulder a huge burden. You know, I can't tell you how many officers, spouses I've spoken with that are very much looking forward to that retirement date, because of the burden that they shoulder, you know, hoping and praying their loved one comes home that night. And so that's that's and also what they're enduring throughout that shift. So it's there's there's a heavy burden there. And in one of the to what you're saying, when we really brainstormed on this, when we refined this platform, we don't require any credentials.
Daniel Marquardt:So they can use an alias, they can use whatever they want. They can use a burner phone. We don't, we really don't care. But the beauty is that if they want to establish relationship with that chaplain, they talk to them, they trust them, they're like, hey, they can then direct text, indirect call that chaplain again. They don't have to go through like a hub.
Daniel Marquardt:So there's the whole intent is giving them the support, meeting them wherever they are, and giving them the support and whatever they need at that juncture. And the only safeguard we have is there's a pop up that says stop, and that's basically to block the bots. That just says confirm here that you are a police officer and or family member of an officer. That's all. And they click through and then it's directly into our portal, to speak with a CHOP.
Daniel Marquardt:So.
Betsy Smith:How is it that you're getting the word out to cops about this?
Daniel Marquardt:Well, that's that kind of leads into obviously through relationship, through other things. I was invited to be a guest speaker at both the Lake County And Cook County Chiefs Of Police Luncheon last year and got in front of several 100 police administrators, which that's great. A lot of it's word-of-mouth. Obviously, media, we're doing that. But I'm super excited about our grassroots movement, and that's really a huge need, which we call our church partners program.
Daniel Marquardt:So we the program is designed to it's a turnkey program that allows equips churches, local churches to uplift their local police. And so we yes, we want to we don't want to just shoulder this and make this a brand, a unifying brand. Yes, we want to do that. That positive, communicates a positive message. We love police.
Daniel Marquardt:It's unifying, it's non divisive, it's pretty universally appreciated. But, you know, we we also want to make this a grassroots initiative and get people on the ground engaging with their local police. So so unfortunately, so we ran a pilot for about two years in Chicagoland with a handful of churches and and really refined the program, and now we're launching it nationwide. And the goal is to get local churches, which are in their own communities, and open up a dialogue, establish relationship with their local police administration, and get to know their local police officers and their families. And we have facets of that in ways to have tangible ways to uplift local officers and their families.
Daniel Marquardt:And one of those is a commitment to pray for them. But our goal is in 2025 to add 1,000 churches across America, uplifting at least 1,000 police departments and sheriff's offices. And our five year goal is by 02/1930, that all 18,000 police departments and sheriff's offices are uplifted by at least one local church. So these are a group of, you know, sometimes 50, sometimes churches can be 35,000. It just depends.
Daniel Marquardt:It's scaled for every from a small church to a huge church. But people in their own community uplifting their own officers. And it's a it's a powerful tool. Already the fruit that we've seen from the churches that have been engaged with this, it's really exciting.
Betsy Smith:Well, and that's the thing. Know, churches especially and people in general want to do something. You know, I hear this all the time when I'm traveling around. What can we do as citizens to help law enforcement? And what you guys are doing is a very concrete way of supporting your local law enforcement beyond just being nice to the cops and taking them some cookies and things like that.
Betsy Smith:You know, this is a very concrete solution to that what can we do question.
Daniel Marquardt:Yeah, and we really wanted an all encompassing approach, a full three sixty approach where, yes, our tagline uplifting police, that's not just from from our positive stories that we spotlight and and helping change a public certainly change the narrative in spotlighting their good, but uplifting police to elevate the public opinion standpoint, but uplifting them holistically, spiritually, giving them the support and resources they need. But on the grassroots side, as I said, engaging the local churches to express their gratitude from their their their church members and parishioners. And that that has a huge lasting impact. But it all starts with relationship. It starts with, you know, that phone call.
Daniel Marquardt:And that's why we actually had one of our church partners, a pastor called me up and said, You know, I got to tell you, we're I'm kind of ashamed. And I said, What do you mean? And he said, We've been here this long and we never stepped foot in our local police department. We never knew our officers and we had no idea what they had to deal with every day. And and he just said, I'm thrilled we're part of this, but I'm really convicted that we didn't do something like this sooner.
Daniel Marquardt:So I'm really, really excited, and I know it's going to make a fantastic impact, especially when it spreads across the nation.
Betsy Smith:You know, you make such a good point because I think a lot of communities, especially if they have a smaller suburban or rural police department or sheriff's department, And the cops do such a good job of keeping things safe that people don't really know the bad things that a cop in a nice community might deal with. And I think that's one of the most important things about what you're doing is because I think people around the country think, oh, those poor cops at NYPD, Chicago PD, LAPD, but those poor cops at the local sheriff's department where there's 10 deputies and they're dealing with all kinds of strife is really at issue too. I have to ask you, so how do you collect and push out those positive stories? Because I know that's one of the things that you do is you wanna let people know the good things that cops do because we mostly do good stuff. How do you do that?
Daniel Marquardt:It takes some research, and I encourage police officers, and when I was at the Lake and Cook County Chiefs of Police lunch, and I encouraged them, I said, Send us your stories. And that's one of the things that we really encourage officers, and we'll continue to start doing that maybe as a monthly to encourage departments that are following us on social media, on Facebook, or others to share with us, share their stories on We Love Police on Facebook. And, but via email, it really it's, I know this is no surprise to you, but the good stories are not the easiest in the world to find. And then finding them where they have, they're verifiable, they're legitimate, and sometimes, frankly, some of it comes right from police department social media, where we're able to take it from their stories. But it does take some scouring and some research, but it would be fantastic if departments just started inundating us with their positive stories.
Daniel Marquardt:So we would welcome that. So, and they can directly email stories@welovepolice.org. That's one of our intakes for stories. So that's an access point.
Betsy Smith:And citizens can do that as well, right?
Daniel Marquardt:Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And if there's a great story, whether it's a local paper or it's in no paper at all, but, or a news channel, a lot of them are nationally news, or locally news covered from a local news station. But, you know, really the key is getting the word out on all of these positive stories because they're just they're they're endless. And we all know that the recycling bin that the standard media loves to they love to sell bad news and make it sound like that's the norm.
Daniel Marquardt:And we wanna try to counter that as best we can. So the more stories people send us, the easier it is on us to promote the good.
Betsy Smith:You also have merchandise. I was looking at all your merchandise before the show. You got some really cool stuff. Talk about that.
Daniel Marquardt:Thank you. Yeah, we have a company actually in your neck of the woods that made in America products, which is, we're very proud of. But yeah, the We Love Police merchandise. When we actually designed our logo and came up with our branding, with our tagline, Uplifting Police and Spotlighting are Good, we wanted something that was, brought everyone together, that was universally agreeable. And so the logo, We Love Police, it's kind of cool.
Daniel Marquardt:Actually, I'll just, I I don't know if you can see it.
Betsy Smith:Yeah, I love it. It's perfect.
Daniel Marquardt:So, but the, it's made in America. We have hoodies and t shirts and hats and rear window transfer stickers and, you know, tumbler dishwasher safe stickers and other stuff. But they can find it on our website, on the shop site at welovepolice.org. And really, our intent was what would, if a police officer spouse or a police officer themself pulled up to a civilian vehicle or any vehicle on the road and saw this or was at a fill in the blank event or at a hardware store, wherever it is, And they saw this message, this branding, we love police, to put wind in their sails, to give them encouragement, to give them a pat on the back to say, hey, we're not in this alone. Because the reality is that the vast majority, and I say vast, I think it is surpassed 80% of America, truly loves and appreciates our police.
Daniel Marquardt:Unfortunately, that narrative doesn't get out there. And and really, yeah, so not only are people supporting our organization when they purchase our merchandise, but they're they're sending that message in their community and to those that oftentimes they don't even know who's seen or looking. They're sending a message subliminally and overtly that police in America are truly loved. That narrative can't be said enough.
Betsy Smith:Yeah, absolutely. Dan, tell everybody again about the website and all of your social media because you have a lot of it. Where can people
Daniel Marquardt:find Absolutely. So it's just welovepolice.org. Very easy to find. And we are on Facebook. We love police and Twitter slash X or on truth social and probably leaving one or two out of there.
Daniel Marquardt:But, you know, that can give everyone a good idea where to find us. But, you know, obviously being a five zero one(three) we are relying on funds. No one from our organization takes 1p. 100% of our proceeds go to help police provide greater chaplain access and then obviously our church partners access. But a lot of those resources, they come in, are going to help fund our police banquets, our regional police banquets.
Daniel Marquardt:And those are pretty costly to put on, and we want to make them a home run event. So it's tax deductible contributions. So if people want to donate, they can donate right at the top of our site. But subscribe to our newsletter too. We have newsletter as well that showcases spotlight stories of the week, and then also so people can sign up for the newsletter.
Daniel Marquardt:But donate, shop, anything. But definitely keep visiting We Love Police and like us on social media, Facebook, and send us your stories, share with us. Really, this is one of those grassroots thing where word-of-mouth and same thing on social media, the more, we want officers to know that this resource is out there. I mean, the chaplain access and everything else is only as good as people knowing about it. And so really, that's our hope.
Daniel Marquardt:Spread the word and share it with police officers across America and family members so they know that these resources are out there for them.
Betsy Smith:Yeah, I think, Dan, this is going to be absolutely huge. So I'm so grateful I got to talk to you, and I can't thank you enough for spending time with us today. And if you'd like more information about the National Police Association, you can visit us at nationalpolice.org.
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