Around The Snow Bowl
Photos by Ed Carattini Jr.
Fairfield’s fearless female
n BY AMBER RAMUNDO
It may have been Fairfield Police Department’s first time par-
ticipating in the Special Olympics Snow Bowl, but the West Es-
sex Local 81 team brought something to the turf that no other
team had: girl power.
Stacy Chiarolanza noticed that she was the only female play-
er in the flag football tournament, but she was hardly fazed by
the gender gap.
“You can’t go out there and be timid. That presence alone can
get you hurt,” noted Chiarolanza, who has 17 years on the job
and is used to the mental toughness required both on the job
and in the game. “I’m not fazed by being surrounded by guys.
Sometimes I think I’m tougher than they are.”
Team captain Chris Hlubik agreed. After years of working
with Chiarolanza and also playing alongside her at the Local’s
annual softball game, Hlubik knew that she’d be a strong asset
to the team.
“I’m super happy she wanted to play with us,” he expressed.
“We don’t take it easy on her, that’s for sure. And she doesn’t
take it easy on us.”
Chiarolanza was glad to see that the other PBA teams weren’t
giving her any special treatment either as she stood her ground
64
NEW JERSEY COPS
■ APRIL 2018
on defense.
“I got bumped a couple of times but whatever,” she said.
“That’s part of it. It’s fun.”
When in doubt, Chiarolanza referred to the mindset that she’s
used to help her succeed on the job for so many years.
“You’ve got to act and be confident, whether or not you ac-
tually are,” she stressed. “Always go into it assuming that you
know what you’re doing.” d