A 911 dispatcher in Ohio alerted police officer Hunter Willoughby to an unusual situation at 2 a.m. on June 15. A new mom was on the line — and she was frantic.
“She said her breast milk had dried up and she needed formula for her 1-week-old baby,” Willoughby, 32, a corporal with the Miami Township Police, tells TODAY.com, noting that the woman had been driving around for hours in search of a store that was open.
Willoughby, a father of two young daughters, jumped into action.
“My heart went out to her,” Willoughby says. “She said her baby had been screaming for a couple of hours and I’m a dad — I know how hard that can be. Those first few months are a whirlwind of emotions."
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The body cam footage of what happened next is now going viral on Facebook after it was shared by Chief of Police Mike Mills.
"You don’t often hear about everything a police officer does in the course of their shift, but I do, and this is an example of the Miami Township Way," Mills wrote.
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In the video, Willoughby arrives at a Meijer supermarket that has been closed for several hours. Using a flashlight, he begins pounding on the glass door.
“I just had a feeling someone would be there,” Willoughby says. His instincts were right, and after he explains the situation, an employee allows Willoughby into the store.
Willoughby beelines to the formula aisle and studies the options before making a selection. Then, he grabs two infant baby bottles for good measure.
"I called the mom and told her I'd see her in a couple of minutes," Willougby says.
When Willoughby stepped out of his police cruiser holding a grocery bag, he says a look of relief washed over the exhausted mom, who was holding a "tiny little baby."
“She was super appreciative and tried to pay me, but I refused,” Willoughby shares. He says it wasn't a long conversation, as the woman had a hungry baby to feed.
According to Willoughby, his department is known for going above and beyond. He notes that two officers recently purchased a car seat in the middle of the night for a parent in need.
“You tend to hear the bad stories, and the good stories get overlooked,” Willoughby says. “We’ve built our entire department around helping.”
“I’ve worked with some of the best people I know, through law enforcement,” he adds. “Yes, there are some bad officers. But 99% are good.”
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