PAX Centurion - November / December 2015

www.bppa.org PAX CENTURION • November/December 2015 • Page 5 2015 was a tumultuous year for law enforcement, to say the least. During the holidays, please take a moment to remember the fallen officers who will not be here celebrating with their families. We must never forget any of them. I hope everyone gets to take a breath, relax with their families, and celebrate the Christmas Season peacefully. Vice President’s Message: Michael F. Leary, BPPA Vice President Merry Christmas and looking toward an exciting new year at the BPPA T o start, I would like to sincerely wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy NewYear. As the year comes to close and I look back on 2015, I am pleased with what this new administration has accomplished. I hope all of you are as well. There is still much to done be done, and in 2016, we will work even harder. Right now, we are focused on getting the new building opened sometime early in the year. In January, main table bargaining will begin. Those of us on the bargaining committee have already started planning and preparing. I know everyone has ideas on what we should look for in the new contract so please, feel free to speak up to me, the other leadership members, another member of the bargaining team, or your representative with your ideas. We all have heard countless times how our job includes not only enforcing the laws, but being a social worker, a mental health expert, a marriage counselor, and a baby sitter. Now, we need to add homeland security expert. The reality is frightening. The world has changed and there is no going back. One of the things I would like the BPPA to begin concentrating on is obtaining more resources and more training for our members. We need all the tools possible in order to protect this city and ourselves. Even then, it may not always be enough, so stay vigilant, know your surroundings, back each other up, and take nothing for granted. Remember, we are targets. Just as the public is being urged to “say something if you see something,” we too need to step it up and question everything. We are trained observers who, because of the sheer nature of our work, have the opportunity to see things “regular” people do not. Trust your instincts. 2015 was a tumultuous year for law enforcement, to say the least. During the holidays, please take a moment to remember the fallen officers who will not be here celebrating with their families. We must never forget any of them. I hope everyone gets to take a breath, relax with their families, and celebrate the Christmas Season peacefully. And as you are checking off items on pages and pages of Christmas lists and as a result, spending way too much money, just think, time goes by fast. Next month is myAcademy Class 25-91’s 25 th Anniversary and I can’t tell you where the time has gone. So, enjoy the time while you have it. And if you get a chance to spend some of that money in some of the many establishments that advertise in the PAX, please do so. It is always wise to support those who supports us. Merry Christmas! We all have heard countless times how our job includes not only enforcing the laws, but being a social worker, a mental health expert, a marriage counselor, and a baby sitter. Now, we need to add homeland security expert. The reality is frightening. The world has changed and there is no going back.