The St. Louis and St. Louis County departments then split the amount and gave officers $100 bills to distribute as they saw fit.

Other departments, such as Kansas City, have made it a tradition, St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson said.

“It’s an absolutely great idea to show officers in a positive light. Especially post-Ferguson, obviously our relationship with the community has been strained,” Dotson said.

In St. Louis, some officers went to specific families they knew from their beats. Others stopped drivers and gave out $100 bills instead of tickets.

Ellis and Clancy did a little bit of both.

En route to one location, the officers spotted James Montgomery waiting for a bus with his daughter, Semaj, 6. But they started to board a bus before the officers could reach them. The officers turned on their lights and pulled in front of the bus. Clancy boarded and asked Montgomery to step off the bus.

His daughter’s jaw dropped and her eyes widened as she watched the $100 bill pass from Clancy’s hand to her father’s.

“I didn’t know the police did things like this,” Montgomery said.