By Father Michael Redden

(Assistant Pastor of Holy Family Church; Assistant Chaplain to Georgia Association of Police Chiefs; Volunteer Chaplain to Atlanta Bureau of Police and Fulton County Police.)

The vocation of a police officer is also people: to protect, to serve, to help them in an emergency. Usually they are people in trouble, unable to cope with their own problems, unable to follow the laws of society, unable to live in peace and harmony. They are the people a police officer meets.

Police officers and clergymen have similar vocations. They both serve people and by combining forces are better able to serve their community.

Many police departments have recognized this and have started chaplaincy programs that serve the needs of people in our growing, complex society. We here in the State of Georgia have a number of such programs scattered throughout the different counties.

With every new program comes a need for knowledge and direction on how to do the job well and thanks to Monsignor Don Kiernan, that is how the Georgia Association of Police Chaplains came into being.

A large number of police chaplains from all over the state came together in the Holiday Inn at Gainesville to seek the necessary knowledge and direction on how to do the job well. These men, along with representing different police department, also represented religions: Catholic, Methodist, Baptist, Lutheran, and Episcopalian -- (how's that for ecumenism in action?)

An opening talk was given by our own Archbishop on "An Administrator Looks at the Work of a Chaplain." In his talk, one point came across very, very clearly: availability. The chaplain needs to be continually available to those he serves.

Chaplain Larry Parker from Hapeville spoke on his experience as a chaplain and reminded us that we are not policemen but representatives of God's word, kindness and understanding.

Chief Ray Pope, Jackson, MS, spoke on "The Chief and his Chaplain" and told us that all too often people leave God out of their lives for too long for no reason other than there was no one to remind them of the fact.

A long time was spent on discussing a constitution for the association. This discussion was chaired very well by Monsignor R. Donald Kiernan, the Reverend Frank Kirlangitis (Chatham County), the Reverend Frank Wade (Garden City) and Father O'Brien (Savannah).

In the evening, an acceptable constitution was drawn up and accepted by all present. So now, we have a Georgia Association of Police Chaplains that is affiliated with the Georgia Association of Police Chiefs, and the International Conference of Police Chaplains.

The object and aims of the association are: to serve those selected or appointed to serve as police chaplains of the several law enforcement agencies and associations and to collect study, standardize, summarize and to disseminate factual data for the purpose of promoting the professionalism of the police chaplaincy program of the state.

Duties of a Police Chaplain

As part of the chaplain's official duties with the department he will serve, the Chaplain is expected to perform the following tasks and other such duties that may be requested of him y the Chief of Police:

1. Assist department officials in making notification to families of officers receiving serious injury, or upon death.
2. When officers are seriously injured or have died, respond to hospital emergency room on request and identify himself to the hospital staff and work with staff according to common ethical courtesies.
3. Visit sick and injured police personnel at home or in the hospital.
4. Attend and participate in funerals of active as well as retired members of the department.
5. Be on call on the street during any major demonstration in your city or any public function requiring the presence of a large number of police officers.
6. Upon request of any officer, you may counsel him or her with personal problems.
7. Conduct memorial services and religious activities.
8. Participate in orientation of recruits.
9. Present formal lectures at the Police Academy.
10. Participate in "in-service" training classes.
11. Attend roll calls.
12. Attend department graduation, promotions, award ceremonies, dinners, social events, etc., and participate therein in keeping with religious administrations.
13. Represent the department before official bodies upon request.
14. Public relations efforts.
15. Provide liaison with other religious leaders in the community.
16. Respond to all major disasters; bombings; building collapses; explosions; airplane crashes; multiple alarms of fire; unusual industrial accidents and other disasters

Following the conference, Monsignor Kiernan of Atlanta was elected president; the Reverend Frank Kirlangitis of Savannah was elected vice president; Father Frank O'Brien of Savannah was elected treasurer, and the Reverend Larry Parker of Hapeville was elected secretary.

Over 50 police chaplains were present, representing departments from Atlanta, Fulton County, Savannah, Hapeville, Waynesboro, Marietta, Powder Springs, Lawrenceville, Garden City, Brunswick, Valdosta and Albany.