Volunteer officers save city thousands

In addition to patrolling parks and helping direct traffic, McMinnville?s Public Safety Unit takes a substantial load off police officers by leading funeral processions.

The all-volunteer unit of auxiliary officers began Oct. 27, 2003 as a way to keep up with the rapid growth the community is experiencing. By handling calls that don?t require full-fledged law enforcement officials or emergency personnel, the volunteers allow officers more time to handle police business.

PSU officers are not certified police officers ? and they don?t carry a firearm ? but they are specially trained in various areas of emergency and non-emergency services. The unit lends a hand in duties such as funeral escorts, stalled vehicles, special events, fire assistance, medical assistance and traffic control.

Along with giving assistance, the PSU officers can be seen patrolling public areas such as ball parks, the Barren Fork Greenway and the walking trail at the Civic Center.

?I enjoy it,? said PSU officer Norman Elrod, who has been with the program since its beginning. ?We all enjoy it. It?s rewarding because you get to help people. We get to stop and talk to people because we are not on any time restraints.?

According to Police Major Bryan Denton, the unit has become valuable to the department and to the department?s budget. In the past four years, the unit has worked 8,344 volunteer hours which saved the city $140,000 in pay and benefits if an officer was paid for the same job.

?I don?t know what we would do without them,? said Denton. ?They save a lot of police officer time. We get a lot of compliments on the way they handle funeral processions.?

The program began with a $36,000 federal grant and a $15,000 local match. Currently, the city budgets $6,000 annually for fuel, vehicle maintenance and training sessions.

The unit logged 2,439 hours in its first full year. In 2006, the unit logged 2,939 hours. Along with the increasing hours, the unit has also increased from six PSU officers in 2003 to 11 in 2006.

The current Public Safety officers are: Gail Campbell, Lester Cowell, Dearl Cole, Norman Elrod, Allen Jaco, Robert Molloy, Paul Ramsey, Bobby Rutledge, Bill Wanamaker, Lierd Woodlee and Ed Yager.

If anyone is interested in volunteering with the Public Safety Unit, contact Sgt. Mark Mara at 473-3808. Mara coordinates the training and evaluation of all volunteers.