Page 7 - TPA Journal November December2021

Chief Sauceda and his team sought out numerous training opportunities over the years, and
as an operator he attended a TTPOA basic SWAT school held by Houston SWAT. He recalled
watching a Houston SWAT Officer in his mid 50’s run through an O course with grace and
ease, and he had an epiphany. At the time his team fully embraced the ‘get big and smash’
SWAT man archetype, and culturally most of his peers did not expect to live past 40 due to
heart problems, bad diet, and other issues. He realized that it was possible to be an elite
athlete later in life, and that having balance in fitness abilities was going to help much more
than only being strong. He realized that they needed to change to a more balanced functional
fitness type training and take better care of themselves to enable longevity. While attending
the LEMIT command college he wrote a white paper on nutrition for law enforcement. It
addressed numerous issues officers faced with their diets and how to make better
choices/break habits that all lead to the number one killer in law enforcement - heart attacks.
He came to the conclusion that commitment can only be accomplished through self
discipline. Sure they could change how someone looked or ate, but they really needed to
change their lifestyle to support healthy choices for years to come. Create systems that become
habits which would stick. In addition he started thinking about caring for the whole person -
physical, spiritual, mental, and financial wellness. When all these needs are met and balanced,
Officers are able to perform at their top potential.

Attending training from numerous instructors exposed the Chief and his team to different ideas
and philosophies on training. They realized that evolution was the mark of professionalism,
and even the best teams were constantly working to find a better way. They began to embrace
change and committed to being involved with TTPOA. From the conference to the competition
to being active on the board, training was an absolute must. Later on when his agency had
an officer working as a regional director on the TTPOA board, they brought in training and
gave free slots in classes to neighboring agencies so they could share those opportunities with
the departments that could not afford to send their own people. They focused on bringing
everyone up in the area, because they knew when those big calls or pursuits happened, there
were a variety of agencies who responded and the better everyone was around us, the more
they would succeed. Chief pushed the underlying philosophy down to the officer: “Train to
be the Officer you want responding to your loved one when they have an emergency”.

He embraced a mantra of “Go big or go home”. He began to encourage his admin to think
10, 20, 30 years down the road and make decisions based on those perceived needs. No
dream was too big - just because it hadn’t been done or he wasn’t sure how he would
accomplish it did not mean it was time to throw that idea away. Keep moving around and over
obstacles, and eventually you will reach the finish. The most important resource to keep in
mind was the officers. Focus on developing their mindset, their faith, embracing servant
leadership, supporting their financial decision making, and normalize counseling for typical
mental health issues we all face.

Nov.-Dec. 2021 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • (512) 458-3140 3