**Click here to view the video**
Chief John Bryfonski is pleased to share a new video showcasing the members of the Bedford Police Department.
“We all got into law enforcement for different reasons but we all have one purpose: to protect and serve our community,” said Chief Bryfonski. “The support we receive from Bedford residents is one of the things we love most about our job. We hope this video will help provide a little more insight into the work we do and why we do it.”
The video features a variety of members of the department, all of whom provide their answer as to why they wanted to get involved in law enforcement: Officer Norman Frink, Officer Whitney Mansfield, School Resource Officer Danielle Nightingale, Officer Tony Ssonko, Lead Communications Specialist Nina Malley, Officer Timothy Hayden, Officer Shannon Gardner, and Accreditation Manager and Social Media Specialist Monique Pliakos.
“I didn’t really know I wanted to be a cop until my senior year of high school when I met a K-9 officer,” said Officer Mansfield. “They came into my high school health class and they started talking about what police officers do and what their job in a community is. I really fell in love with the way they’re able to give back to a community.”
For all, it’s this ability to form the bonds and relationships with the members of the community throughout the course of their work that drew them to the field of law enforcement.
“I love people, I love talking to people,” said Officer Ssonko. “In this line of work, we get to go out into public and we get to meet a ton of people. That’s exciting. I couldn’t imagine doing any else in life.”
“When I see kids playing basketball, I will always ask them, ‘Hey, can I play with you guys?,” said Officer Gardner. “We’ll start to bond over that. Hopefully, I’m out there doing the right thing and they start to see me as someone they can trust.”
This holds true during emergency situations as well.
“The best part about being a communications specialist is being there for those people during their time of need, being the first person on the scene with them to try and help them get through whatever is going on in their life,” said Malley. “They’re having the worst day of their life and I’m right there with them until the other first responders can get there.”