Community group funds vital police training in Saxonburg
In some situations, training is everything.
Thanks to the generous donations of residents, officers at the Saxonburg Police Department are better able to deal with the many dangerous situations they could face.
The two full-time and eight part-time officers on the force recently completed Defense Tactics Level 3 training at Makowski's Martial Arts & Fitness in Clinton Township.
Mayor Bill Gillespie said the officers spend a seven-hour day at Makowski's every three months, learning various tactics from certified instructors there.
The cost of $900 per session is paid by Friends of the Saxonburg Police, a community group that donates money toward programs that support the police officers.
Gillespie said the training was a “department idea.”
“Part of it is in December (of) 1980, we lost Chief (Gregory) Adams to a hand-to-hand combat situation, basically,” Gillespie said. “It started with a fight.”
He said as the borough official who oversees the police department, he wants to ensure the department never loses another officer.
“Our officers are very valuable,” Gillespie said. “We want them to be safe, and control situations that get out of hand.”
Other trainings have been in de-escalation and self-defense. Some officers also train continuously at Makowski's.
Another upcoming training session planned for this year is for high-risk traffic stops. Those sessions also will include emergency medical personnel from Saxonburg Volunteer Fire Company EMS.Gillespie said in addition to funding training, Friends of the Saxonburg Police buys safety gear and stop-the-bleed kits for officers.“Friends of the Saxonburg Police has been an excellent organization that supports the police department and the community,” he said.Lt. Kevin Stiles said he is aware of no other local police department that has a community-based funding branch for training and safety equipment.He said the borough budget in a small community like Saxonburg could not support a substantial training budget for police.“If we didn't have them, I don't think we'd be able to do hardly any of this training,” Stiles said of Friends of the Saxonburg Police.
Stiles said since beginning the quarterly training sessions six months ago, he has experienced two on-the-job incidents that he felt he could have handled had things escalated and become physical.“I like having that knowledge to say, 'If they do this, then I can get myself through it,'” Stiles said. “It helps me to not panic and do something I shouldn't do.”He said Makowski's brings in other students to play out scenarios with the officers. Some students fight and others do not, in order to prepare the officers for any situation, Stiles said.He said the officers are now trying to get a grant to hold force-on-force training at the police station.Stiles appreciates Friends of the Saxonburg Police and the donations that provide the training officers need to remain safe.“People here recognize that we need help, and they're willing to do something about it,” he said.
