Police Ride Along Video and My 3 Takeaways
I recently went on patrol for an official Police ride along with Officer Homza and K9 Dasti of the Wilkes-Barre City Police K9 Unit as a follow up to his episode of the podcast (Ep.78), and here are my 3 takeaways.
#1 Appreciation & Perspective.
First let me start by saying, I gained a greater appreciation for law enforcement from this police ride along.
Not that I didn’t appreciate law enforcement prior to this, but after “walking a mile” in someone else’s shoes as they say, it gave me a new perspective and a greater appreciation for the job these men and women do each day.
When I left my house that morning, there were several thoughts going through my head…
What’s going to happen today? What if we get in a car chase? What if we get caught in a shootout? Am I going to return home today?
But the one that stuck in my head is, “Am I going to return home today?”
Stop and think for a minute. When you go to work everyday, do you ever think, “I might not come home today?”
Probably not.
I know I don’t. But that day, I thought about it.
These men and women, who put their lives on the line everyday knowing they might not return home, gave me a whole new appreciation and perspective.
#2 Leadership.
Officer Homza is a leader in many ways.
He truly cares about the community and goes out of his way to build relationships.
While on patrol in Wilkes-Barre, we met a few young kids that approached officer Homza’s car while we were turning around in a parking lot of a housing development.
We drove back to the Wilkes-Barre police station quick to get some sticker/badges and of course, lollipops.
He handed them out to the kids and they were so excited to talk with us.
Two of them even said they want to be just like Officer Homza when they grow up.
There were high-fives all around.
Officer Homza is a leader.
#3 Police Officers are Human, too.
I witnessed officer Homza treating people with kindness, empathy, respect – a few qualities that are rarely shown in the mainstream media with police officers.
Most times police officers are portrayed as intimidating individuals, and they can be.
It is their job to be assertive, and give clear and direct instructions.
While on a domestic dispute call, officer Homza actually took the time to understand and empathize with this individual, aka the “suspect.”
While on patrol and in a tense situation like this, that could have gone south very quickly, officer Homza was calm and respectful.
There was a mutual respect.
The situation was resolved without any conflict or arrests made.
We all even shared a few laughs at the end of it.
Police Officers are Human, too.
Now if you made it this far, thanks for reading. Below is a link to the full ride along video:
Thank you Officer Homza and the Wilkes-Barre City Police K9 Unit for giving me this opportunity to join you on patrol!
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