The six officers cited were Anne Donnelly, Sgt. Richar Walker, Sgt. Jose Ortiz, Cpl. Steven Strobel, Cpl. Kristin O’Neill and Collin Steward. They were joined by Police Chief Jason Cutler, Mayor Colleen Bianco Bezich and Commissioner Frank Troy.
Six Haddonfield police officers were cited for going above and beyond on the job during the August commissioners meeting.
The recognition comes four times a year, so the latest honors took place in the second quarter. Mayor Colleen Bianco Bezich and Commissioner Frank Troy were on hand to celebrate the officers’ bravery and quick thinking.
Officer Anne Donnelly and Sgt. Richard Walker were commended for helping a young child in immediate need of medical help and the care and comfort of an affected sibling.
“None of this surprises me about the two of you,” said the mayor. “I’ve seen repeatedly your compassion, your empathy and the solid police work you do, so I’m very honored and proud to present these commendations to both of you.”
Sgt. Jose Ortiz, Cpl. Steven Strobel and Cpl. Kristin O’Neill were recognized for detective work related to a series of motor vehicle arsons. The Camden County Prosecutor’s Office announced in May the arrest of a Haddon Township man charged with arson and criminal mischief after a series of vehicle fires in Concord Circle, among other crimes.
“They’ve done a fantastic job of not only communicating with our residents and our police force, but also with the agencies in Burlington County and the prosecutor’s office,” Bianco Bezich noted.
Officer Collin Steward was recognized responding to a call from a suicidal 12-year-old female without complete name and location information.
“You understood the difficulties of locating this juvenile in need,” Bianco Bezich recounted. “You acted quickly and thoroughly in your research to find the correct name, address and ID of the juvenile and provide information to the jurisdiction officers, so they were able to respond and check on the well-being of this suicidal juvenile and provide her with proper assistance.”
Police Chief Jason Cutler presented a safety report at the meeting from the first six months of 2024, compared with the same period in previous years. He encouraged residents to continue to lock their car doors and take their keys with them to prevent car theft.
During his report, Fire Chief Patrick Gormon continued to encourage people to call 911 in case of emergency and not the firehouse station.
” … If you have an emergency, 911 is the ticket,” he said.
Gorman recalled picking up around 10 calls this month from people who dialed the station with emergencies such as the smell of smoke or someone tripping and bleeding, calls that should have gone to 911.
“We are very busy, and a lot of times, we’re out on calls,” he explained. “And if you call the station, it’s going to go to the answering machine and we don’t check it until we get back. We do have a quasi-manned station, but if the man goes out and a fire call goes out, there’s no one there to take it.
“So please spread the message to your family and acquaintances: 911 is your best friend. They’ll direct the call where it needs to go.”
In other news:
- The commissioners approved on first reading a PILOT program for The Place at Haddonfield; it will have a second reading on Monday, Sept. 23, the first for a capital ordinance appropriating $585,000 from general capital surplus to improve the Reillywood Playground, design Radnor Field recreation improvements and construct a police department building. The second hearing for the capital ordinance will be during the commissioners’ work session on Monday.
- Lullworth Hall is back on the market. Interested buyers can contact Kevin Burns at Markeim Chalmers at (609) 332-4020 or email kburns@markeim.com. The property is available for viewing through Friday, Sept. 13, with proposals due by 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 17.
