WESTFIELD – Dozens of events sponsored in the city each year by non-profit groups are made possible – or at least more feasible – by the volunteer efforts of city’s auxiliary police force and that force was augmented Monday evening when the city’s Police Commission appointed six additional officers.
The auxiliary officers are called on frequently to assist with security, traffic and crowd control for events such as concerts on the Green, the Penguin Plunge and several annual parades.
The force is primarily comprised of two types of officers – retired law enforcement officers who are willing to give something back to their community and younger officers who view the auxiliary force as a stepping stone to a career as a police officer.
Robert Sorel, the director of the unit, said that the auxiliary officers are trained “to a high level of police work” and may sometimes be the first emergency responder at an incident.
All the auxiliary officer are required to complete the six-month-long reserve and intermittent police training academy and, after appointment, get additional training from full-time city officers.
The auxiliaries give more than their time, Sorel said, pointing out that they pay for the $1,400 course themselves and also pay for their uniforms, firearms and all other necessary equipment from their own pockets.
Once trained, the auxiliary officers are available to assist with community events providing security and other services which would otherwise cost event organizers hundreds or thousands of dollars.
As an example, Sorel said that 16 auxiliary officers worked at the five kilometer road race staged in the city over the Memorial Day weekend. He said that, if the organizers had to pay for their services, “the cost for this event would have been approximately $2,600.”
The city’s budget includes no funding for the auxiliary force but Sorel was quick to say that the police department shares supplies and assets with the auxiliary force. Most of the money available to the auxiliaries comes from donations from the community, often from the organizations helped by the auxiliary officers.
In addition to helping the community at public events, the force also helps the regular force and makes regular patrols, usually on weekends, to augment the full-time patrol officers.
The auxiliaries also turn out, Sorel said, for emergency situations such as floods, tornados or other severe weather events.
Sorel, together with his command team of Lt. Don Humason Sr. and Sgt. Jon Jedlicka, had been coordinating a 22-person force until Monday when their number was increased by the Police Commission.
Six additional officers – Joshua R. Fanion, Joseph Gandulfi, Matthew J. Gardner, Matthew Hartmann, Bradford E. Smith and Levi Z. Ward – were appointed at Monday’s meeting and they will be available for duty as soon as they complete all the necessary training.
