Committed to protecting their community Five Towns Auxiliary Police officers to be recognized

Last Updated on Monday, 28 March 2011 19:08 Written by By Ann E. Friedman / LIHerald Monday, 28 March 2011 19:00

For their commitment 10 Five Towns Auxiliary Police officers will be honored by the county. From left are, Sheldon Glatt, Samuel Kopolovitz, Chaim Sandler, Sgt. David Spier, Commanding Officer Lt. Danny Gluck, Steven Miller, Jonathan Isler, Adam Kwitkin and Ivan Goodstein. David Roffe is not pictured.

Along with full-time jobs and busy lives, their dedication to keeping their Five Towns neighbors safe motivates auxiliary police officers to make time for significant community service.

That commitment will be noted at the 28th annual Nassau County Auxiliary Police Longevity and Service Awards Ceremony on April 7, when 10 members will be recognized for their service in 2010.

Five Towns Commanding Officer Lt. Danny Gluck, a 12-year member, explained that auxiliary police volunteer their time and receive no compensation or benefits. He added that of the 40 auxiliary police units in Nassau County, the Five Towns unit is the largest and fastest-growing. “Each unit has its own town or village to cover,” Gluck said. “We’re the Five Towns, so we have more square miles to cover than other units.”

Auxiliary police go on day and evening patrols, direct traffic, handle crowd control and help with security at community events such as fairs and parades. During emergencies they also aid the Nassau County Police Department where they are needed.

Gluck described his auxiliary force as a diverse group. “Our unit is made up of local citizens who live in the community they serve,” he said. “We’re made up of all different backgrounds, and when I took over this unit two and a half years ago we had 14 officers, and today I have 22 officers.”

The Five Towns unit was founded in April 1996 and is based in the 4th Precinct, on Broadway in Hewlett. It covers Atlantic Beach, Lawrence, Inwood, Cedarhurst, Woodmere, Hewlett, Meadowmere, Atlantic Beach Estates, Woodsburgh, North Woodmere, North Lawrence, Hewlett Neck, East Atlantic Beach, Hewlett Bay Park and Hewlett Harbor.

Jon Isler, a four-year auxiliary member and a resident of Cedarhurst, will receive an award for 300 hours of service in 2010. He said he wanted a way to get involved in the community and do something different than his full-time job as a financial advisor and vice president of investments at a brokerage firm. “I’m honored to be a part of this wonderful organization and thrilled to save the taxpayers of Long Island money,” Isler said. “We work for free, at no cost to the taxpayer.” Isler said he enjoys being out among the public at fairs, parades and community events. His most memorable moment, he recalled, is of reuniting two concerned parents and their lost child at a community fair.

This will be the fifth time Ivan Goodstein

receives an award for 300 hours of service. “It’s very special,” he said of the award. “It’s just nice to be recognized and for someone to say thank you.”

Goodstein, a New York City teacher, said he logs an average of 25 hours a month in the auxiliary police. “I enjoy helping out the community in which I live and making it safe for families and kids to play and so people don’t have to worry about their safety,” he said. “I’m making a difference being out there and being that extra help when someone has a flat tire or runs out of gas and they need that person who will help them and tell them it will be OK.”

Bob Block, a board member of the Cedarhurst Business Improvement District, said the organization appreciates the work the auxiliary does for the community. Every year, the BID shows its support with a $2,000 grant that pays for uniforms and other equipment.

“They make a great pair of extra eyes for the 4th Precinct,” Block said. “They’re a wonderful group of gentlemen that volunteer their time and support the local police in keeping streets safe, and provide a great sense of community.”

Gluck said that the unit is always looking for new members, and that auxiliary trainees meet once a week for 26 weeks at the police academy. “It’s an abbreviated version of the regular police academy,” he explained.

Sgt. David Spier of Cedarhurst, a nine-year member, will receive an award for 500 hours of service. He joined the auxiliary after Sept. 11, 2001, because, he recalled, it was frustrating to see everything going on and not be able to help. “We have three big missions at the auxiliary,” Spier said. “The first is nightly patrol that makes the community safer, and we’re supplementing police presence. Second is being on site for fairs, runs, parades and community events. These events might not take place without us. And third, we’re a supplemental force for the Nassau County Police Department. We’re there in emergencies and disasters, and allow the community to function in difficult circumstances.”

Asked how he balances his work for the auxiliary and his personal life, Spier said, “I ask for a lot of forgiveness from my family. My wife recently asked if I have a bed at the precinct.”

The awards ceremony will take place at Nassau County police headquarters in Mineola at 8 p.m. on April 7.