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National champs serve it up again Photo by Bob Pennell Gage Clark, a Phoenix reserve police officer, balances a tray of water glasses as he heads out of the busy kitchen at Medford's Red Lobster restaurant. Local police officers are serving customers at the restaurant through Sunday to raise tips for the Special Olympics program. Special Olympics benefit gives cops another tough job BY JULIE SWENSEN It's not every day that you see a cop donning a white apron and serving icewater in a restaurant. But Oregon State Police Sgt. Michael Buckman was doing just that Friday at the Red Lobster in Medford, earning tips for Special Olympics as part of the nationwide "Cops & Lobsters" campaign. Asked how waiting tables compares with police work, Buckman said, "I have to go back to work to rest up. "The waiters and waitresses earn every dime," said Buckman, who said his stint as a waiter has helped him appreciate their job. The sergeant recruited local cops to join in the national fund-raiser four years ago, and the first year, he and two other troopers raised $900 in tips in two days' work. The next year, officers from other agencies joined in the expanded effort and raised $8,193, setting a national record and raising more money than any of the nearly 700 Red Lobster restaurants in the country. Last year they raised $21,651, again claiming the number one spot by about $8,000 over the runner-up in Canoga Park, Calif. "They know that this is serious business now," Buckman said of the competing police agencies. He said the Tigard Police Department, which was number three in the nation last year, has vowed to unseat the Medford-area officers as champs and has recruited the Blazer Dancers to help attract customers. "We've thrown down the gauntlet and have challenged everybody else across the nation to meet or beat us, and so it has generated quite a bit of competition," Buckman said. Eric Sheesley, general manager of the local Red Lobster, said he's worked during the fund-raiser at other restaurants, and here it's been "phenomenally successful." "It's just amazing what they've done here," he said. The Medford-area officers will be even tougher to beat this year, as they'll be working more hours. While the cops used to wait tables during the lunch and dinner shifts, Buckman said patrons would come in between those times, expecting to give a tip to a cop. So this year, he's having officers work two shifts -- from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., to cover the gap. Officers from 11 local police departments, plus support staff and Oregon Department of Transportation motor carrier enforcement officers, are helping out. All are volunteering their time. But Buckman said it's a team effort involving not just the police, but also the restaurant opening its doors, the support from the wait staff, the media, and the biggest member of the team -- the public, who open their hearts and wallets for the program. The sergeant said everybody wins -- not just Special Olympics, but the restaurant with increased business, and the officers, who can give back to the community and improve public relations. "You just have a good time. People see you in a different light," said Buckman, who tells jokes to the customers. "They see you're a human being." Customers were handing $20 bills to Phoenix reserve police officer Gage Clark on Friday. He had earned $250 in tips in about four hours' work. Clark, who was serving water, busing tables and cleaning up, said he enjoyed meeting people, some of whom asked if he'd let them off if he caught them speeding. "I'll do it again next year," said Clark, who'd been wearing a red foam lobster hat on his head. Cops & Lobsters runs through Sunday. The restaurant is at 2200 Crater Lake Highway. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA