Arkansas officer comes to the rescue to take girl to school dance

Van Buren, Arkansas — It was one of the biggest nights of the year. A special school dance for fathers and daughters. But one 8-year-old girl in northwest Arkansas had no date until a hero stepped in.

Officer Nick Harvey said he was nervous. "I did not want to be rejected by a second-grader," Harvey told CBS News.

He had volunteered to escort a child in need to the annual father-daughter dance.

"She was sitting at the lunch table and I walked up and said, 'Hey, did you talk to your mom?' And she said, 'Yeah.' And I'm like, 'Would you like to be my date for the daddy-daughter dance," and so she's like 'yes' and I was 'phew,'" Harvey laughed.

Avey Cox's father died in January. "I've been wanting to go for a long time, but my dad couldn't take me," Cox explained.

Officer Harvey showed up in his police cruiser, they posed for pictures. Another officer ordered a limo to take them to the dance.
Cox said the best part, of course, was the dance.

What did Harvey learn?

"Don't take anything for granted," he said. "Enjoy your kids. Appreciate their childhood because they won't be little for very long."

And his gesture may already be having an impact — even more than officer Harvey could imagine.

Cox said she wants to become an officer.