Eldridge police officer helps six-year-old fight the bad guys in his new room, goes viral

An Eldridge police officer came to the rescue of a six-year-old boy who was afraid of the “bad guys”.

Amanda Williams posted pictures of her son Hayden and Eldridge police officer Bruce Schwartz on Facebook last week. The call for service made by Schwartz came after days of anxiety by little Hayden after his family moved into a new home.

“He’s so used to sharing a room with his big sister, who excitedly has her own room now too,” Williams said. “I’ve tried everything under the sun to get him to sleep in his own room. Nothing is helping. He says he has something wrong with his head and that he can’t stop the scary thoughts that are creeping into it. He believes in super hero’s. He believes in “bad guys” and all other things that appear real to him.”

After trying multiple things to get Hayden to sleep in his new room, nothing was helping Hayden's nighttime anxiety. Hayden had an idea. He asked his Mom to call the police. Officer Schwartz responded.

“We went to the station today so he could talk with a police officer,” Williams said. “After the talk, officer Schwartz came over to our home to fully inspect his bedroom to assure him that there were no bad guys and that nothing in his room that would hurt him.”

During the inspection of the home, Officer Schwartz told Hayden that as he lay day each night to think about the things that him happy rather than the bad things. Schwartz told Hayden he thinks of being a cowboy. The reassurance of no bad guys worked. Hayden slept in his room for the first time that night “but didn’t go down without a fight,” Williams said.

But --- Schwartz’s bad guy fighting skills did not stop with a full night’s sleep. The next day, he surprised Hayden on his first day of school.

“As I was snapping back to school pictures of Hayden this morning, Hayden’s face suddenly lit up,” Williams wrote. What she didn’t know was Officer Schwartz had returned to the home for a follow up and to send Hayden off to his first day of school.

“Truly takes a village to raise kids right these days,” Williams said. “I am beyond thankful that Officer Schwartz took time out of his busy day to come over and talk with Hayden. The kindness you’ve shown Hayden certainly doesn’t go unnoticed and I know he will remember this forever."

Williams Facebook post has been shared more 6,000 times and has over 2,000 comments.