This month :
Berkeley Heights Local 144 member Jeanne-Marie Mocarski
Response Time
A conversation with a prominent NJ State PBA member
The Vitals
• Grew up in Rahway
• Hired in 2002
• Berkeley Heights dispatcher from 2001- 2002
First Response
Conversation pieces
• Founder of Local 144 charity events : PBA Police Santa and Trunk-or-Treat
• Local 144 representative for Law Enforcement United
• Mother of Nick , Jonathan and Jaqueline
In 2002 , you became Berkeley Heights Local 144 ’ s first female member . What inspired you to start a career in law enforcement ?
I was going to school to be a special education teacher at the time , and I was dispatching for some extra money ( at Berkeley Heights Police Department ). I loved the department ’ s environment and my coworkers there . There was a job opening , and I decided to give it a shot . PBA Local 144 members encouraged me and supported me through the academy .
What is your approach to doing your job and serving the community ?
I hear a lot of people say , “ police officers are humans too ,” but if we want people to relate to us as humans , we need to continue to show them that we ’ re human . When you show people that you ’ re approachable , it goes a long way . I love my job because I have the ability to affect the outcome of every call simply based on what I do .
What sort of advice would you give newly hired female officers ?
Always follow your gut instinct and be resilient . The most important thing is to be there for each other and to go home safe at the end of the shift . The best female officers are ones who don ’ t expect anything extra , who can just be one of the guys and who do their job well .
What do you love about being a PBA member ?
I love the brotherhood and the opportunities we have to connect with our community through our charity events and volunteer work . Most importantly , our members are always there for one another . No matter what someone may be going through , they ’ re never alone .
How have you helped Local 144 connect with the community ?
We started the PBA Police Santa in 2015 . It wasn ’ t my idea ; I had seen fire departments do it . But I thought our community is small enough where we can pull this off . The parents choose a gift from their child ’ s Christmas list , and they bring in the wrapped gift with the name and info on it . The children ’ s faces are priceless because they ’ re getting a gift from their actual list , and Santa visits them at home , escorted by PBA members . We brought the police cars and trailers with lights – Santa police delivery units – to more than 150 homes last year for deliveries .
We also do a Local 144 Trunk-or-Treat . We started that because we have a lot of small children in town who aren ’ t going to go out at night . We don ’ t have sidewalks in some neighborhoods , so it was a safer alternative to the traditional trick-or-treating and an opportunity for us to get to know the families .
What sort of impact have you seen these events make ?
The events allow us to communicate with children and families in a casual environment instead of only on calls . When we are driving up to houses to deliver for Police Santa , I love watching the reactions of the kids running to the window and seeing Santa . Their faces light up . When they see us with Santa , they know that they can approach us , and they remember that . It ’ s great to see that the kids and their parents feel comfortable approaching us , and they appreciate what we are doing .
Last Response
Of all the charity events and volunteering , is there any cause that you feel particularly drawn to ?
I represent the PBA for Law Enforcement United , a 100-percent volunteer-driven organization . We raise funds through our Road to Hope bicycle ride to Washington D . C . every May . Our fundraising goes directly to the charity programs we support . One of the great charities that we give to is the Concerns of Police Survivors ( C . O . P . S .). We assist C . O . P . S . in funding a camp for children of fallen officers . Every summer , children of fallen officers are able to go to camp with their surviving parent to socialize with other families who are going through the same exact thing and receive counseling . They don ’ t have to pay a dime . The camp is so important because we know the children of our fallen brothers and sisters are taken care of . Whatever they need through C . O . P . S . ( kids camp ), they will receive .
30 NEW JERSEY COPS ■ APRIL 2018