Take a canoe. Paddle off into the nearby wilderness. Explore more than 1,000 lakes.

The police department in Ely, Minnesota, needs more officers. What will convince people to apply for the job? Maybe canoes.

Ely is a town in the Northwoods of Minnesota. It’s famous for being the gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. So officials will give Kevlar canoes to the next officers they hire. Current police employees will get canoes too.

The canoes are lightweight. They’re made from the same strong fibers as bulletproof vests. Each boat is worth $3,800. The department will also throw in two paddles and two life jackets.

Many U.S. police departments struggle to hire and keep officers. Some offer big hiring bonuses. Will canoes do the trick for Ely? The town of Ely pays police officers well. But it can’t pay as much as a big city might.

The Ely police department has one opening now. Another job will open soon.

Any takers? Police Chief Chad Houde says he already had two calls from interested people by Thursday morning. He expects at least several more.

“You can get done with a shift, maybe it was a stressful shift,” he says. “The best way to decompress is go out canoeing, hunting, or fishing.”

Here’s the catch. Employees who take the canoes must commit to staying on the job for three years.

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. — Romans 13:1