In the last blog I wrote about the concept of simply showing up and how that can carry more of a power than we often realize. I wrote about it from my perspective and in my role as a Chaplain. Today I want to take a minute to share some stories of how the officers offer the same thing when they arrive on a scene.
When they get called to a situation, it’s obviously because something has gotten out of hand and their help is needed. Sometimes officers arrive and it takes their raised voice and their authority to get the situation under control. This doesn’t mean that they aren’t compassionate or caring, they are just doing their jobs. Let’s face it, they have to walk into some pretty heated or really dangerous situations. Also, as I’ve talked about in other blogs, people are also not very compliant or very kind to officers sometimes and that can definitely impact how the officer acts.
But that is definitely not the case with every call or assignment. Many are different. Tonight was one of them. On Saturday a gunman entered a Jewish synagogue in Pittsburgh during worship and killed 11 people. Tonight the Jewish congregation in Galveston gathered together to pray and show support. When I arrived I saw a GPD officer standing out front and another one at the back door. I watched the looks of relief on people’s faces as they saw the officers as they entered their sacred place that should feel safe. Many thanked them for being there as they were leaving. Just their presence for that hour and a half made a room feel of people feel much more at ease and much calmer. It allowed them to grieve for their Jewish brothers and sisters and pray without having to worry that something would happen. Of course it’s awful that we live in a world that this is needed, but since we do, it’s a blessing that we have officers willing to offer that peace of mind.
This is just one story. Another one happened during the day when I was riding with one of the female officers. It was a mess of a situation happening between some family members at a hotel. The details of the call aren’t important, but how the officers handled the situation is. Officer Cadena was speaking with the brother. He would talk about the situation and get himself really worked up. She would ask a question about something else and it would instantly calm him down. He would talk about that topic for a little while and then find himself getting frantic or worked up again. She would repeat something that he mentioned earlier on that separate topic and he would calm down again and continue talking with her. When it came time for him to go with the officers, I believe he was more willing because of the time that Officer Cadena spent with him.
Another officer that certainly provides this on scenes and with people is Officer Puga. I love getting to talk with him about the scenes he’s been on and how he’s helped people. Officer Puga knows that his presence can make a difference in a situation and takes that very seriously. He’s talked about being on death scenes and how he tries to spend a few extra minutes with the family. He knows that a few words of hope and encouragement can help them get through a tough situation. He shared another story with me of encountering a man that he found in his car out at the San Luis Pass. He helped the man to jump start his car so that he could move on from that location, but he didn’t stop there. In talking to the man he realized that he was an addict and was pretty down on his luck. Officer Puga took the time to give him some encouragement and offered him a hug. When he hugged the man, Puga said that he hung on for a bit. Maybe those words and that hug were what the man needed more than jump starting his car. Outside of those things, Puga is very calming to talk with, so I know he brings that to any person he encounters out on the street. He takes great care of the people that he encounters and believes that God places him on calls for a reason.
Another great example of this is from Officer Doucette, a former GPD Officer. Officer Doucette, along with others, was dispatched to a shots fired call at the San Luis hotel earlier this year. When they arrived at the room the room was secured from inside, but they could hear noises as if someone was in distress. They forced entry and found a horrific scene. It was a family of four- a mother, father, a 5 year old and a 10 year old. All four of them with gunshot wounds. The father and the 5 year old were deceased at the scene, but he could hear the 10 year old struggling to breathe. Officer Doucette spoke to the boy and then took his hand to determine if he was conscious. He moved his arm, so Doucette stayed by his side and continually talked with him. Sadly the boy ended up dying, but it was with a little bit of comfort by his side and not left alone in agony because of Officer Doucette’s willingness to stick by his side. I know this scene was an absolutely terrible one to see, but that didn’t stop Doucette from being right where he needed to be, which was by the boy’s side.
Officers offer calming presence in all variety of situations and so much more often than they are given credit. I’ve spotlighted a couple of the officers, but I could go on with so many more. Officers are so easily able to take someone who is distraught and upset and calm them down. Officers are so often portrayed as yelling at people and being forceful. Of course I’m not discounting the fact that this happens and that some officers abuse their power, but it’s certainly not the norm. Very rarely are officers shown sitting down and talking with people who have just had something terrible happen to them or calming someone down at the scene of a robbery or bad accident. People don’t often see how above and beyond officers go to be fully present with people and to really care about their situation. I am so privileged to get to see it all of the time. In fact, I need to write more things down sooner because I can easily forget some of the awesome things that I’ve seen the officers do. It’s really cool that it’s just the norm for me!
