WATCH: One Of Moline’s Finest Skateboards With A Teen
There are seldom times when you see inspirational and heart-warming moments in person. We see them all the time on social media, but to experience them is a different feeling. I had a chance to witness a pretty incredible moment in Moline on Thursday night as a Moline police officer took the time to practice his skateboarding skills with a teen in a church parking lot.
It was a beautiful night on Thursday. Beautiful enough to enjoy some food and cold drinks on the patio at the Los Portales location in downtown Moline (1231 5th Ave). I was there meeting up with two former Miss Iowa winners, Taylor Wiebers (2015) and Mikhayla Hughes-Shaw (2018) to discuss Taylor and me hosting the Miss Clinton County pageant on August 6th in DeWitt, IA. Towards the end of our conversations and catching up, over Mikhayla's shoulder, I see a police officer doing something I've only seen in viral videos.
Across the street from Los Portales is the First Lutheran Church (1230 5th Ave). When I arrived around 5:30 p.m., the officer parked his unmarked car there and did some foot patrolling. At 7 p.m., the officer joined a teen to practice his kickflip skills.
Memorized and in awe of this incredible moment, I of course needed to talk to him. I quickly said "bye" to the ladies and ran across the street to find out who this officer was and thank him for giving the few people watching this inspiring moment.
Moline police officer Garrett Tuttle was the officer attempting some kickflips in the church parking lot. I introduced myself and asked him for his name, and if it was cool to share this moment with you (I was going to anyway). He agreed and without hesitation, officer Tuttle said,
"I remember when I was a kid doing the same thing. It's good to connect with the kids in our community and to have some fun."
I told officer Tuttle thank you for what he did on Thursday night and what he does for the community of Moline.
See the video of officer Tuttle practicing his skateboarding skills and connecting with this teen in Moline below. Don't judge him for not landing the kickflips in the video. He landed one right before I started filming.