PARK RIDGE POLICE DEPARTMENT STAYS “IN TOUCH”
For the past several years, under the direction of Chief Joseph Madden, the Park Ridge
Police Department (PRPD) has made it one
of its top priorities to become a more proactive and “in-touch” Police Department when
it pertains to community involvement and
relations. Our officers take great pride and
dedication in serving our community as well
as safeguarding its residents. The following are
just some of the programs and initiatives that
th e Community Policing Unit brings to the
residents of Park Ridge:
ICE CREAM NIGHT
Starting in 2010, The Park Ridge Police
Department Community Policing Unit teamed
up with a local ice cream shop to create one
of the department’s most popular annual
events. It is a unique way that PRPD members
can meet with the children of Park Ridge in a
very friendly, low stress environment to make
acquaintances and to build a bond. We offer
the children of Park Ridge free ice cream after
they engage a police officer in conversation as
well as music, bounce houses, photo booths,
popcorn, cotton candy and much more. We
are currently working with Dairy Queen
which has graciously donated the time and
resources to help make this event one of the
best events of the year. We look forward to
hosting this event for many years to come.
COP CARD PROGRAM
One of our most popular Community
Policing Programs is the Cop Card Program.
Started as a way to enable children to better
recognize the officers in their community, this
program has quickly grown to be a “challenge”
for the Park Ridge youth to collect them all.
Each PRPD Officer has “Cop Cards” that they
keep in their possession during the program.
Each child is tasked with collecting all of the
Cop Cards from each officer until the set is
complete. Once the set is complete, that child
is to bring all the cards collected to headquarters to verify completion. Once they have
completed the set their names are entered into
a drawing for a multitude of prizes. The prizes
are donated by generous residents and local
businesses. The drawing takes place during a
pizza party that the Police Department hosts.
Past prizes have included game systems, gift
cards, and even an I-Pad.
PARK RIDGE POLICE DEPARTMENT
OPEN HOUSE
The Open House is usually held every
other year in October at PRPD Headquarters.
This is our opportunity to open our doors to
the community to offer a first-hand look at
the inner workings of the Park Ridge Police
Department. We offer tours of our headquarters, vehicles and equipment, and offer K9
and bomb squad demonstrations, just to name
a few. We also enlist the assistance from the
Tri-Boro Ambulance Corps, Park Ridge Fire
Department, as well as other local, County,
State, and Federal agencies. There is always
some cider and donuts on hand for our visitors. The Open House is also a great opportunity to have your child fingerprinted for free
and for you to have the fingerprints on file in
case of an emergency. We look forward to seeing residents at our open houses and keeping
you informed on who we are and what we do
to protect and serve the community.
OTHER SERVICES
Other services that the Park Ridge Police
Department offers include guided tours of
police headquarters for civic organizations,
scout groups, and schools. We also give
presentations to civic organizations or other
groups on such topics as identity theft, crime
prevention, neighborhood watch and safety,
along with many other police and safety related topics. Please also take advantage of our
Vacant Home Check Program. This program
allows officers to physically check your home
periodically while you are out of town or on
vacation. All you have to do is come down
to police headquarters and complete a small
form.
The Park Ridge Police Department has
been and will always be a “community first”
organization. We have a department that
prides itself on building trust and relationships
with our residents, and we look forward to
continuing that tradition for many years to
come.
We want to thank our citizens and the
public for their amazing support. We have so
many people who extend good wishes to us
and they truly make our day. It is an honor
and privilege to serve our community and
help those in need.
If you have any questions, or would
like more information about any one of
our community programs, please feel free
to contact the Community Policing Unit
Supervisor, Sergeant James Babcock at
201-391-5401 ext. 5239 or at jbabcock
@parkridgepolice.com. You can also visit
our website at www.ParkRidgePolice.com.
ABOUT THE
PARK RIDGE
POLICE RESERVES
The Police Reserve Unit proudly
serves alongside the dedicated
professionals of the Park Ridge
Police Department. We strive to be a
professional, effective unit bettering
our community, state and country.
Congratulations to George Harcher,
who was named Reserve Officer of
the Year at our recent awards dinner.
PARK RIDGE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
PLANS FOR THE WORST … AND HOPES FOR THE BEST
The Park Ridge Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is the agency
in town that assists all other Borough groups and departments during
times of crisis. We plan for the worst and hope for the best, and in so
doing, we are always preparing for natural or man-made disasters. We
work behind the scenes prior to forecast events, such as hurricanes, blizzards and medical epidemics, in order to respond and mitigate damage
as much as possible. We are also capable of responding to unforeseen
events such as fires or other incidents of large magnitude. With the
help of Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteers, OEM
plans for and responds to all types of emergencies. Over the past three
years, we have been fortunate enough to not have to fully activate the
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team, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t been working. On the contrary,
we had a response plan in place for Blizzard Jonas in January 2016, and
we recently submitted paperwork for FEMA reimbursement related to
expenses during that storm. Additionally, we were prepared for the 2015
Hurricane Joaquin and 2016 Hurricane Matthew. None of this work occurs in a vacuum, and we thank Borough officials and the other departments in town for their assistance with hazard mitigation.
Please like us on Facebook at Park Ridge OEM, where you’ll find storm
updates and tips on preparedness. Also, please review the tips on winter
storm precautions at https://www.fema.gov.