Frequently Asked Questions

SHIELD616 is a non-profit that donates rifle rated armor (SHIELDS).  The 616 OR 6:16 comes from Ephesians 6:16 that says “Take up the Shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” When I read this verse, I visualized a bullet as a “flaming arrow”.   I also got stuck on the word faith; I want the community to have faith in their first responders that no matter how bad the situation is, they will be coming to help! I also not only want our first responders to have faith in their armor to keep them safe as they face evil, but I want them to know and have an even higher faith that has a better hope, a better peace and a better protection that cannot be lost or destroyed and that is in the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ!

You can select the agency you would like your donation to fund. Your donation can go towards a specific officer in a specific agency, or to an agency, region, or state.  Currently, we have outfitted over 7,295 first responders in 34 states and have worked with over 360 agencies. The easiest way is to donate online or to mail a check. We keep track of the funds for each department. If the department is not listed on our website, please check in with us at 719-345-2442 so we can see if that department would like assistance from us.

Once all the funding is in, it depends on how many officers are getting their gear and when a presentation can be scheduled. We do our absolute best to get the gear to the recipients as soon as possible. If we are unable to schedule a presentation, we typically mail the gear. Once an officer is measured for the gear, it is about 60 days for the gear to be manufactured. 

Each year we strive to get as much of your donation going towards armor as we can. In 2022, we remained at $.86 cents per dollar going towards armor and mission related expenses. The $.14 cents per dollar allows us to continue our mission by paying for salaries, traveling to communities across the nation to present the armor, and paying for other various daily operating costs. We continuously evaluate our budget with our staff and our board of directors. If you have additional questions, please feel free to reach out to us.

Yes, your donation is tax deductible. We are a 501(C)3 not for profit charity. Our tax ID number is 47-4347589.

The mission of SHIELD616 is to provide the best possible armor, not the cheapest armor. We choose to use Angel Armor because it is made in the USA and is such high quality. Our first responders are the BEST, so we choose to provide the highest quality available.

Angel Armor provides a variety of options for the agencies we serve to choose from. We allow the departments to customize what they get so the price varies depending on the needs of the agency. Please reach out to us if you have questions about specific pricing for the agency you are trying to help.

Body armor needs to be replaced every 5 years. Each year the technology improves, and we want officers to have the lightest weight best possible armor on the market.

If you know of a smaller rural agency that could use a hand, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We use our Greatest Need Fund, to help take care of these officers and agencies who need us the most.  Your charitable donations help us provide this life-saving protection to agencies who otherwise could not afford this all-day rifle rated armor. Smaller departments in rural areas often have difficulty raising enough funds to provide the armor they need. It not only keeps them safer but helps give them the confidence to protect their communities.

Yes, as we have grown, so has our transparency. Our goal as a non-profit has always been to show how and where we spend YOUR donor dollars. Because of this, we hired an independent auditor to give you an unbiased look in our financials. 

We do our best to invite donors and community members to attend one of our many presentations where the gear is delivered to the officers in need. At these presentations, we honor the officers and match them up with a community member who will “adopt” them and be their support team to bring some positivity to their first responder throughout the year. To be invited, we must have your contact information. Please reach out to info@shield616.org if you have questions. We send the invites by email first and then by mail if we don’t have an email address.

When you donate online, you will automatically get a link to print your tax receipt. If you donate by check, a tax receipt will be mailed to you. If you did not receive your tax receipt, please reach out to info@shield616.org and we will send you a duplicate receipt.