A chill is in the air and that means the holidays are upon us.

Thanksgiving is just a couple of weeks away. And Conyers will be celebrating the Christmas season in December with the Hometown Holiday Parade Dec. 7 and Shop with a Cop Dec. 14th.

As you well know, Conyers is full of shopping centers and restaurants which bring many people and traffic to our city before the holidays.

Historically, we see an increase in property crimes during the months of November and December. We encourage you to take these simple precautions as you do your holiday shopping this year:

• Avoid carrying large amounts of cash.
• Though you may be rushed and thinking of other things, stay alert to your surroundings.
• Be extra careful if you carry a purse. Do not leave it unattended in a shopping cart even for one moment.
• Do not overload yourself with packages, and do not leave those packages exposed in your vehicle.
• Lock your vehicle!
• Beware of strangers approaching you for any reason. Con artists may try various methods to distract you, with the intention of taking your belongings.

Apple users, have you upgraded your device to iOS 7? This is actually an important first step in preventing theft and facilitating device recovery in the event of theft. Devices running iOS 7 can be remotely secured when lost or stolen, making it password-protected so it cannot be "wiped" and used again.

Basically, your device becomes unusable if it is stolen.
We are excited to hold our 6th annual Shop with a Cop event at Walmart Saturday, Dec. 14. Our officers, along with Rockdale County sheriff's deputies, Georgia state troopers, GBI agents and Rockdale County Fire Department firefighters look forward to this program every year.
These personnel accompany children from families experiencing financial hardships to shop for Christmas gifts.

To help make a child's Christmas a special one, you may make a cash or check donation payable to Shop with a Cop and drop it off at the police department, 1194 Scott St. Walmart gift cards are also accepted.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am thankful for the outstanding officers that make up our department.
Recently, Officer Shawn Hutchison received the Life Saving Award from his former department, DeKalb County Police.

Officer Hutchison, who recently joined our agency, received this award for his role in helping to save the life of a special-needs boy choking at a restaurant in DeKalb.