Letter From the Editor – September/October 2023

Welcome to the September/October issue of OFFICER Magazine. As this is delivered, school has been in session for well over a month and Halloween is about two weeks away. The leaves on the trees have been turning and tourism is peaking in the northeast part of our nation as folks go… just to look at the pretty tree colors. In my younger days, I’d have laughed at that. Now, I’m kind of happy to see the leaves changing and I look forward to evenings around the firepit with friends. As we all know, sweatshirts and jackets make it easier to conceal our handguns during this time of year. When it gets colder, we have to dress warm enough to make the gun harder to get to.    

This article appeared in the September/October issue of OFFICER Magazine. Click Here to subscribe to OFFICER Magazine.

So, what should we be preparing for? Craziness at football games is an inevitability, as are drunk arguments at football watch parties. Halloween parties are always fun, but pedestrians hit by cars are a too common an occurrence during trick or treat. If your agency or community is hosting a Trunk or Treat event, plan and communicate it thoroughly with a heavy focus on safety and visibility

Once we get past Halloween, we can look forward to the ever-increasing level of craziness that is “the holiday spirit.” While it’s great for the commercial retail industry, it creates an increase in calls for service. Fights, disorderliness, shoplifters, oh my! Unfortunately, none of those offsets or decreases the number of drunk drivers, domestics, etc. that are common throughout the year. In fact, the calls for drunk and disorderliness might increase as the parties and family gatherings grow

It’s smart to plan ahead as you schedule manpower. That has to be juggled with the leave requests, callouts, etc. that also tend to be common this time of year. It is an unfortunate reality that we have to work on holidays while others enjoy the days off. For your troops, if you’re a supervisor or team leader, keep in mind that working on holidays can create added stress and domestic discord at home. There’s enough added stress this time of year, so we don’t need to add in a lack of happiness at home. Do what you can to balance the work hours against home life and encourage your troops to focus appropriately on off-duty life.

That said, “off-duty” might be a little riskier this time of year. Even off-duty we need to maintain a sense of awareness. Shopping malls, light displays, special shopping deals at big box stores and everywhere else large groups of people will gather will make prime targets for potential active shooters and other general craziness. If you’re out and about, with or without your families, stay alert to what’s going on around you so you can enjoy the holidays too… safe, well and happy with those you care about.