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Matthew Elliott didn’t want to see his hometown torn down.
Scotty Nixon didn’t want Surprise to forget that Black Lives Matter.
Raymond Grim didn’t want Surprise police officers to not know some people are praying for them, too.
All three men took different approaches to help Surprise get through a turbulent week that started when nationwide protests spilled into the Valley suburbs.
The death of an unarmed black man in Minnesota sparked riots across the country, something the city of Scottsdale learned when when violent protesters looted the Fashion Square Mall area on the night of May 30.
A threat to Surprise the next night, though, is what really hit home to police here.
Fortunately, thanks in some part to Mr. Elliott’s vigilante group he helped organize, major trouble was averted.
Police spokesman Greg Welch said no arrests were made, and there were no reports of damage related to protests anywhere in Surprise.
The city’s businesses even got away without having to board up, like some in nearby communities had to.
In the end, the week’s events in Surprise were more threats and show than actual violence, and that’s good news for everybody.
Here is the story of a week of unrest in Surprise, and how the city stayed safe from three different perspectives:
Grab your guns
Social media posts began popping up on Sunday, May 31, about the potential for violence in Surprise. Somebody named Angelina Rizzo posted on Facebook that afternoon that the city was the next target, just a night after looters tore through Scottsdale.
“Don’t worry Scottsdale,” her post read. “We are going to Surprise to protest tonight. Hurry back and tell your rich friends! PV is next!”
Later, Ms. Rizzo posted again: “Surprise tonight be ready 6 p.m Ross parking lot.”
One Ross customer, Jenn Igna, posted on Facebook that the store had customers leave because they had received “a serious threat.”
Mr. Elliott, 22, who lives in Ashton Ranch, said he heard about the threats from a friend who follows a page for Antifa, a group President Trump recently designated as a terrorist organization.
About a dozen and a half people showed up with their guns, but strangely none of them knew each other. The police who showed up talked to the vigilantes, who asked if it was OK to give an added security presence in the area.
“They told us it was fine to stay and act as a guard dog,” Mr. Elliott said.
Before 7 p.m., Mr. Elliott said their presence paid off. By his estimation, 15 or 16 cars with people inside wearing masks and hoodies, drove around the parking lot about six or seven times.
He said the potential violent looters were checking out the vigilantes who were waiting before they drove out without any incident.
Surprise mayor Skip Hall said he heard about the social media threat from the owner of Saigon Kitchen, 14071 W. Bell Road, who texted him after the posts were made.
That brought major concern to the mayor because of what happened in Scottsdale just the night before.
“I wasn’t nervous, but I was concerned,” Mr. Hall said.
To make sure things were OK, Mr. Hall drove himself over to the parking lot by Ross where he ended up seeing the armed group waiting there. Coincidentally, he said he recognized many of the faces.
“I didn’t discourage them, let’s put it that way,” Mr. Hall said.
The group hung out for about four or five hours just to be on the safe side. They exchanged phone numbers and left the parking lot hours after chasing off the potential trouble-makers.
“Most of us were born and raised in the city, and we’re not going to let somebody come in and destroy this place,” Mr. Elliott said. “We have a lot of city pride.”
Guns Plus, 16551 N. Dysart Road, was also mentioned as a target for looters on social media.
On the business’s Facebook page, it posted the need for an “armed presence to detour any pillaging” of the store.
“Who can I count on?” it continued. “Not planning on harming anyone. Hopefully, an armed presence will be a deterrent.”
The next day the store called the people who came out to provide security “10 warriors” in a thank you post on Facebook.
Praying for peace
Mr. Grim is not new to hosting prayer services in Surprise. He’s been doing it for years under various circumstances from special events to the National Day of Prayer.
But the civil unrest that rolled through the nation was something nobody could have predicted.
He got together with Chris Herring of Oasis Baptist Church in Surprise to organize a nightly prayer group in front of the Surprise Police Department, near City Hall.
“The chief of police, Terry Young, wanted to let us know he appreciates the prayers,” Mr. Grim told about four dozen people who braved the 106 degree heat on June 3.
Mr. Herring said he believes prayer is always an answer.
“I thought a number of things from feeling down and feeling hopeless,” Mr. Herring said. “I thought the only thing we could do is pray. This is about being a light for Surprise. I don’t want to feel that hopelessness.”
Russ Smith, who attended a prayer, is dealing with the nation’s race issue head-on in his family. Mr. Smith is white with six children, but two of them are black.
“This is a topic right now in my home,” Mr. Smith said. “This is real personal.”
Mr. Smith said he doesn’t have the answers for his family.
“I don’t know how to raise them through this,” he said. “I really need people from the black community to come in and help me.”
Protesters state case
The Surprise Police building was also the scene of a peaceful protest the same night as the Scottsdale incident.
Mr. Nixon, however, wanted to be a little more visible with his protest group, so he set out for Bell and Litchfield roads on June 3.
“I’m out here for BLM, but it’s more of a civil matter,” the 19-year-old Ottawa Arizona student said. “I want to spread awareness in Surprise.”
He was able to organize a few dozen protesters — mostly around his age — on Instagram.
Mr. Nixon is a Surprise native. He’s a graduate of Shadow Ridge High School and was able to drum up support for the cause at the busy Surprise intersection.
Constant horns honking in support were met with cheers from the protesters.
Mr. Nixon said some people in the community aren’t quite sure what to make of his protest [which was also scheduled to happen again June 8 after press time].
By Mr. Nixon’s estimation, just a tad over a quarter of the vehicles passing by had something negative to say or taunted them.
“I think we handled ourselves good,” Mr. Nixon said.
One truck pulled alongside and somebody inside said to the group they were lucky he didn’t have a gun.
“It’s worth it,” Mr. Nixon said about some of the harassment the group took. “We’re not here to spread hate. We’re here to show love and support.”
The young group of protesters took a knee and rose a single fist in solidarity anytime a police officer stopped at the traffic light in front of them.
Mr. Hall said, despite the protests, he’s not worried about the conduct of police in Surprise.
“We as a City Council are very supportive of our police,” Mr. Hall said. “They know it. We got their back and we just don’t have a lot of complaints about our police. The last time we got a complaint I think it was about a traffic violation.”
City response
Despite the potential, Surprise was lucky to get through unscathed, the mayor said, looking back.
“From a preparation standpoint, we were very prepared,” Mr. Hall said about the potential for a violent protest.
The city has its emergency operations center operating from 1 p.m. until deep into the morning, with camera active at every intersection in Surprise.
Police have put up jersey barriers at most of the entrances to Surprise shopping centers at night to help reduce the flow of traffic in there.
Patrols were increased throughout the week just in case anything else flared up.
Mr. Hall said all of the mayors in the West Valley were keeping each other abreast of potential threats in the area through daily text messages.
He said at night he would get texts, some that would mention potential problems like 40 people gathering at a McDonald’s in Goodyear or a group that was threatening to target the Wigwam in Litchfield Park.
“It’s the people who want to riot, break windows and steal stuff,” Mr. Hall said. “Those are the ones we’re concerned with.
Former NAU Lumberjack who loves going to concerts (or I did), watching sports (or I did) and hanging out with friends (oh, never mind). I also enjoy backgammon, surfing and men who are not afraid to cry.
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