photo Ridgewood PD , Mars Rover , no bomb squad
Ridgewood Junior Police Academy cadets bond with first responders
July 10, 2014 Last updated: Thursday, July 10, 2014, 3:21 PM
By Laura Herzog
Staff Writer
They led the Ridgewood Fourth of July parade, put out fires, saw a helicopter landing and a mock crime scene and went to a firing range. They heard lectures from village officials, made friends with Ridgewood’s finest and even got to see ammunition up close.
Not a bad start to the summer for a bunch of Ridgewood’s aspiring emergency responders.
After several days of fun, from June 26 through July 2, 44 cadets ages 10 to 14 are now graduates of Ridgewood’s first annual Michael Feeney Junior Police Academy.
The program was a success, and, according to police officials, it will be returning next year.
“I have not stopped getting compliments from the parents of the kids, the kids themselves,” said Lt. Glenn Ender, the academy’s coordinator. “It was better than we thought it would be.”
Three such positive reviews came from 11-year-olds Jimin Kong, Paul Gillan and Ashli Hamilton.
“It’s really fun. We get to try new things. There’s a lot of new people you meet, like the officers. They’re really nice,” Kong noted.
