MCCOLL, S.C. (WBTW) — A national nonprofit group said it has received threats after announcing plans on Monday to send patrols from Charleston and Charlotte to McColl following the resignation of its entire police force and the death of its mayor.
The One In Five Foundation for Kids said in a news release that it received a telephone threat warning volunteer safety teams to “Stay out of McColl” and that it should “Mind its own business” or face, “an accident”
The organization formerly known as the Uvalde Foundation for Kids, was formed following the Uvalde, Texas, mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in May 2022. The group is launching STOPNOW citizen patrol teams this week in an effort to ensure the safety of McColl’s student population and community of about 2,000.
Officials with the foundation said the threat was traced by its internal safety teams, which operate its 24-hour school threat database and crisis center, to an unavailable number in Bennettsville.
The group said that while it takes all threats seriously, it will not stop its efforts to help the community and the patrol plans will move forward.
“We don’t know for sure what is happening in McColl but we know that we are committed to helping as we can to ensure the safety and welfare of its students and citizens,” said Daniel Chapin, the group’s founder and national director. “We cannot determine where or why exactly threats toward our efforts have come. However, we will not be deterred and will continue our plans in the days and weeks ahead.”
A team of five patrol members will arrive this week, with more being recruited and trained to aide the community, the group said, adding that they will assist in community safety patrols and community support engagement until more substantial safety and formal law enforcement arrangements are made.
According to a release, STOPNOW Patrols, modeled after the “Guardian Angels” anti-crime unit in New York City in the 1980s, traditionally patrol school communities to minimize and prevent safety incidents from reaching school campuses while also providing extra encouragement and support for students and neighborhoods during times of trauma.
