Page 12 - FOP May 2019 Magazine

Financial Secretary’s Report
An Officer Appreciation Day should be held in every district
Greetings! May is here, school will be out soon and our busy season will begin.
First, I must thank everyone who showed up at the April 1 protest downtown. Our frustration and disap- pointment in Kim Foxx’s actions as state’s attorney were broadcast nationwide. It was a good showing on a vital subject.
A grievance committee meeting was held April 17, with the following results: The committee decided to withdraw 13 grievances, including a few medi- cal grievances that Jay Ryan addressed. The medical
grievances are quite complicated and Jay is the authority on these matters. After a few thorough questions from the committee, we were able to reach a final decision.
The committee decided to go forward on five grievances, includ- ing one that was several years old (but the officer had kept all of his paperwork and communications with the parties involved). After a brief decision-making process, we were confident in going forward.
We were successful in making decisions on all the grievances be- fore us, and there were no deferred grievances.
On to the picnic...this event is set for Wednesday, July 10 at Gael- ic Park, 6119 147th St., Oak Forest. Cricket is busy putting together raffle baskets and Joe Gentile has gotten us a new carnival group to run the rides. The picnic offers soda pop and candy bags along with an ice cream truck — you should have seen the kids last year as they
lined up for the delightful frozen treats. A DJ also will be on hand to play wonderful music.
I like to give the gentle reminder that attendees should bring their own food. People sometimes show up and forget to bring their barbecue grills — ice cream only goes so far! Right now, I’m putting in my reservation for good weather on that day. I hope it holds up.
I also am looking toward our last general meeting on June 18. If the weather is good, we can cook out and get some of that good Battaglia Italian sausage. It’ll be a pleasant change from the pizza we have all winter.
I want to thank Eric “Crunchy” Davis of the Fourth District Com- munity Police Unit for inviting me to Officer Appreciation Day. There were many people from the community who showed up to give their thanks and gratitude for all the hard work police officers do every day.
Also on hand was Bishop Tyrone Harrington of the Greater Morning View Missionary Baptist Church to provide comfort and support to our officers through his faith and prayers. There was also some good homemade food and plenty of sweets.
Officer Appreciation Day was so nice, and it’s just the type of event that I encourage every district to hold. All it takes is a little bit of coordination by the good officers in the community policing office. Just give Eric a call down in 004 if you need advice.
Stay safe.
MICHAEL GARZA
12 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ MAY 2019