Each month, Advocate Community Newspapers visits with Sgt. Jim Little, Sr. Cpl. Rick Janich and Officers T.X. “Tri” Ngo and Wes Stout, who are stationed in the Dallas Police Department’s East Dallas Storefront (670-5514). The storefront is best known for its bicycle patrol officers. (This month’s lunch, which rotates among neighborhood restaurants, was held at Angelo’s Spaghetti House in Lakewood.)
Advocate: What have you guys been up to lately?
Rick: The Storefront has just started to organize an Explorers group, which is an organization affiliated with the Boy Scouts nationally. Explorers programs specialize in certain (topic) areas, and law enforcement is one of the most popular. (Storefront officer) Wes Stout is working on organizing this group, which will be based out of and meet at the Storefront.
Advocate: Who typically becomes a member of the group?
Tri: The Explorers need to be at least 14, up to 20 years old, and they can be male or female. We sponsor the post, so it will be called the East Dallas Police Storefront Post.
Rick: It’s really for kids who are interested in some type of law enforcement or criminal justice career. Maybe they’re just interested in police work. Explorers will be doing fund-raising projects to cover the cost of their trips, camping, conferences, community service projects – all sorts of stuff.
A lot of the kids in the program end up going into law enforcement careers. It’s a great way to see “behind the scenes” in law enforcement, to really see what our jobs are like.
Tri: It’s really like the Boy Scouts in a lot of ways.
Rick: But when kids get into high school, Boy Scouts can sometimes get “old” for some of them, so there are Explorer posts for law enforcement, nursing, fire fighting, all kinds of things.
Advocate: How many people can become Explorers at the Storefront?
Rick: There’s really no limit on the number who can be involved – we’ll take as many as we can get. They pay around $10 in annual dues and buy uniforms and equipment – but that’s what the fund-raisers are for. If someone wants to be a member but can’t afford the dues and equipment cost, we’ll be able to work something out.
Advocate: Is this looked at by the department as a way to keep kids “off the streets”?
Rick: Some of the kids I’ve been associated with in past programs have been right on the edge, so to speak, and it makes a difference. The program has really helped them get back on the right track. But most of the kids involved are good kids; we don’t let gang members or kids with felonies or anything like that get involved.
Advocate: Is a big time commitment involved?
Rick: The group will meet in the evenings regularly, and we’ll provide transportation, probably from a central location. The success of the program depends upon involvement – if the kids and the parents don’t really get involved, the program dies.
Something else we’re getting involved with is a Police Athletic League basketball team sponsored by the Vickery Place Neighborhood Association. That will be going on beginning this month. I’ll be coaching a team of 15-year-olds, both male and female. Pam Stephenson, who is active in the neighborhood association, is coordinating the project, and games are played twice weekly for a couple of months. And actually, there are two basketball leagues, one for the kids from 15-17 and one for kids under 15. But the Vickery team is only for 15-year-olds and less.
Advocate: Do the teams play against other Police Athletic League teams, then?
Rick: Right, there’s probably eight or 10 teams for the summer. And at other times of the year, soccer and softball or baseball teams are organized.
Advocate: Are policemen always the coaches?
Rick: No, it just so happens that I’m the coach for this team, but what happens is that policemen do all of the organization and help sponsor the whole program.
Advocate: If another neighborhood group is interested in getting involved in either the Explorers or Athletic League program, what should they do?
Rick: Call us here at the Storefront at 670-5514. All they need is a coach and $140 entry fee per team (for the Athletic League). And in Vickery Place, the neighborhood association is paying the fee so there is no cost to the kids.
