Much has been said about David Taylor. On rare occasions, I had the pleasure of working with him. I didn’t know Dave as well as some of you, but through the memories and stories that continue to be told, I have come to know him better. We will always miss him.
Many of you have asked about the GPOA newsletter over the past year, or should I say a lack thereof. As the President of the Greensboro Police Officers Association, I take the credit as well as the blame. I understand the need for a timely, as well informative newsletter. I will do what is necessary to ensure that you receive information about your association in a more timely manner. We will do better.
One way we plan to get information out to you faster and on a more regular basis is to e-mail you with our thoughts, ideas and plans. In order to accomplish this, I ask that you email Gavin Naquin at: gmnaquin@graphix.com with your personal e-mail address. He will be compiling an e-mail list to which he will send informational updates.
Another way, is to again invite you to attend our monthly meetings on the 1st Thursday of every month at 1730 hrs at our office located at 241 Summit Ave., Suite 108. This is the best way to find out what the Association is doing or not doing for you.
On the legislative front, HR218 in the US Congress deals with a nationwide concealed carry for all current and retired law enforcement officers. Please take a minute to log into www.HR218.com and show your support for this bill.
The POIII/ POIV positions are on hold for now. They were originally proposed by Chief White to begin in the middle of the 2001-2002 budget (after Jan. 2002). The City Manager did not include these positions in the budget presented and adopted by the City Council. Although the positions were not approved in the 2001-2002 budget, they are still under consideration by the City Manager to be put into place should a budget surplus be located.
Shop-with-a-Cop 2001 was an excellent success this year. It was held December 15th at 0830 hours at the Big K-Mart located on S. Holden Rd. For those of you who have never participated before, Shop with a Cop is where we take at-risk and underprivileged kids shopping for Christmas. This year we took over 30 kids shopping and a great time was had by all. Chief White even put in an guest appearance this year. We also took Christopher and Elizabeth Beane shopping this year too. We’ll have pictures next month of that adventure so stay tuned!
The incidents of September 11th have changed things for us as law enforcement personnel. I pray for God to continue to bless the United States of America. We in the law enforcement community need now, more than ever, to be alert and vigilant. I hate to say it, but we will continue to be stretched thin. We must have more cops. We must have more communications personnel, records specialists, lab technicians, and more support personnel. We must have more help in order to provide the level of safety and security that the citizens of Greensboro deserve. I hope the powers that be in the city government do not ignore this fact.