Hemet Police Promotes Volunteers Class # 43 Graduates Receive White Uniform Shirts.

Press Release
DATE:	May 12, 2016
RELEASE DATE:	May 12, 2016
CONTACT:	Lt. Eric Dickson (951) 765-2418
PREPARED BY:	Sgt. Nate Miller

Hemet Police Promotes Volunteers

Class # 43 Graduates Receive White Uniform Shirts.

The Hemet Police Department is proud to announce that seven recent Volunteer Academy Graduates have completed their first six months of training and all have well-exceeded the 16 hours per month requested of them. These Volunteers, who join a group of over 80 department-wide, were provided with White Uniform shirts this morning from Chief Dave Brown during a ceremony at the Hemet Police Department.

Deputy Chief Rob Webb later echoed Chief Brown’s appreciation for all the volunteers do for the citizens of Hemet and their police department; “There truly is no way to explain to the residents of Hemet how much we (the Police Department) depend on our volunteers every day. They staffsub-stations, assist with traffic control, start Neighborhood Watch programs, and take pride in helping people at special events like the Ramona Play, the Christmas Parade, and Veteran’s Day celebration.”

In addition to the white shirt ceremony, some veteran volunteers were given awards for going above and beyond. Dorothy Harper & Frank Bulleit were honored for their tireless dedication to Special Events. Both have dedicated hundreds of hours over the last couple months coordinating and assisting at Senior Health clinics, the Ramona Play, Rx Take-Back events, Safety Fairs, Marathons, and are currently gearing up for the upcoming Hemet Ryan Air Show next month.Diane Huff was commended for dedicating nearly 1200 hours over the past few months doing all sorts of tasks which allowed full-time staff members to concentrate on higher priority issues.Victor Varia, the unit’s Coordinator who is a volunteer himself, was given a departmental Golden Star Award for his leadership and organizational skills by Hemet Police Sergeant Nate Miller. Varia, who retired several years ago from the US Post Office, has volunteered at Hemet PD, alongside his wife Millie, for six years.

On any given day or night, Hemet Police Volunteers can be seen assisting citizens at Hemet PD’s three substations, speaking to civic groups, patrolling neighborhoods, shopping centers & parks. They also assist neighborhoods in starting Neighborhood Watch programs, they perform traffic control at collisions, help search for missing persons, babysit children, assist Alzheimers patients, and they have become staples at such events as The Ramona Play, Hemet’s Annual Christmas Parade, Harvest Festival, Veterans

Day Celebration, and much, much more.