Tampa's police department is making a major effort to recruit more minority officers.

And that latest effort is taking place on Sunday mornings in Tampa churches.

Tampa police chief Jane Castor, along with department officers, visited Bible-based Fellowship Church Sunday in Temple Terrace. The sermon included a message about making a difference in the community.

"It has to be a passion and desire to serve your community," Castor told the congregation.

Department officials handed out police recruitment materials to church members like Kourtney Pendergrass, a recent graduate from the University of South Florida with a degree in criminology.  

"This is a really good start," Pendergrass said of the recruitment efforts. "Because as you can see there are a lot of minorities in the church, you know...as stated, (a lot of) kids want to be police officers."

With more longtime officers retiring and a need to mirror the increasingly diverse community it serves, TPD wants to expand its number of black and Hispanic officers.

"So we thought what a great place to go but into the worship centers," Castor said. "Into the churches and try to get people interested in law enforcement."

Pendergrass said she was interested in what she heard from the chief.

"And I figured why not it's right here," she said. "God gave it to me actually so I just went ahead and took the opportunity."