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GREENSBORO — On a cool crisp evening on Oct. 27, 1980, Talmadge Varner was walking in the 300 block of North Greene Street as darkness fell on downtown.

As he had for more than 30 years, Varner was working to make his living selling copies of The Greensboro Record to businessmen heading home during the evening rush hour.

Around 5:30 p.m., he was blindsided — struck in the back of the head by two teenagers with a two-by-four.

The teens stole $1,400 from the 66-year-old Varner and ran into the night. Varner went into a coma and the trail to find his assailants went cold over the following months.

But thanks to the Greensboro-Guilford County Crime Stoppers program started in January of 1981, two people were arrested the following March and later found guilty.

It was the first of 6,683 cases cleared thanks to Crime Stoppers.

That number is part of the reason the program learned this week it will receive the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award.

“You wonder if that crime would have been solved without the help of the community,” said Sandy Tew, who has led the Crime Stoppers program since its inception. “We’ve always just wanted people to call us.”

The program will be one of 56 recipients of the award, which is given annually to various individuals and community groups credited with making contributions to public well-being and security.

The program was selected by the FBI’s Charlotte field office from several nominations.

“It’s very exciting. I’m amazed daily at how (Crime Stoppers) works, and it hasn’t changed since we started in 1981,” Tew said.

Since the program’s beginning, it has received 26,183 calls, which have led to 9,695 arrests.

The program has helped in the recovery of $4.1 million in stolen property and $12.4 million in drugs. It serves both Greensboro police and the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office.

Crime Stoppers works by allowing callers to give crime tips anonymously. If the tip leads to an arrest or conviction in a case, the caller can receive up to $2,000 in reward money.

The program’s 373-1000 phone number is the only city-owned phone without caller ID. Callers are given codes to keep track of tips they make.

Money is distributed privately by community members of the Crime Stoppers Board of Directors at a local bank.

Throughout the entire process, callers are identified only by numbers and never by name.

“The citizens who call in are a key component of the Crime Stoppers program,” said Greensboro Police Chief Tim Bellamy.

“One of the key things is that it has never compromised anyone who has provided us information. People are calling us on a continuous basis, and it’s making Greensboro a safer and better community.”

Maj. Tom Sheppard of the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office said the program has remained a asset to his office throughout the years.

“A few years ago, we had a murder one morning and an arrest that afternoon because someone called Crime Stoppers. We initially didn’t have a clue who did it.” Sheppard said. “It’s one of the most beneficial programs we’ve ever had here.”

The award will be presented in Washington in March 2010 by FBI Director Robert Mueller.

Contact Ryan Seals at 373-7077 or ryan.seals@news-record.com