King’s Kids of America will celebrate its 14th anniversary at 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, in Faith Temple Church, 476 Wellons St. Guest speaker will be Suffolk Police Chief William Freeman.

Freeman was born to the late Mrs. Lessie Mae Freeman and was reared in Suffolk.

He has been employed with the Suffolk Police Department since 1974.

He was promoted to his current position in January 2002, and previously moved up the ranks as patrolman, detective, sergeant, lieutenant, captain, major, and deputy chief.

The public is invited to attend the program, where children involved in King’s Kids will receive awards and prizes. The grand finale of the event will be the choosing of kings and queens of the six King’s Kids sites.

Patrons can also buy ads in the event’s program. Costs are $100-full page; $50- 1/2 page; $25 – 1/4 page; $10 – business card; and $5 – listing on patron page. The ad sales are used to offset the event’s expenses. Ad deadline is Sept. 23.

For more information, call Betty Knight, 539-6918; Brenda Nichols, 484-0442; or Pamela Baker, 535-6794.

Prior to employment with the Suffolk Police Department, he joined the Nansemond County Police Department in 1971.

Freeman is a U.S. Air Force Vietnam veteran.

His early education began at Suffolk Public Schools; he attended Christopher Newport College and completed the FBI National Academy, as well as numerous other police schools.

Freeman holds several professional memberships, including the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

While continuing to broaden his background in law enforcement, Freeman recently attended the &uot;Leading, Educating and Developing (LEAD) conference at the Weldon Center for Public Service, &uot;Missing and Exploited Children, CEO Seminar;&uot; &uot;Building Effective Problem-Solving Teams;&uot; &uot;Constitutional Law and Bias-Based Policing;&uot; and the Suffolk Leadership Academy.

Freeman is actively involved in his church, East End Baptist, where he is vice chairman of the Deacon Board.

He is married to Carolyn O. Freeman and they have four children.