On Wednesday afternoon the Marana Police Department held a badge pinning and swearing in ceremony for their five latest recruits. The ceremony has become a tradition within the department and is a way of welcoming the new officers, as well as their families, into the department.
“We really have a great organization,” Marana Police Chief Terry Rozema said. “We have great people here.”
The ceremony is a way to formally welcome the latest hires to the department, many who have been on the job for several months. Each of the five newest officers were introduced by the chief and then had their badges pinned on by friends, spouses, and family members. Following the badge pinning, the five officers were then sworn in by Marana Town Magistrate Laine Sklar.
Chief Rozema stressed that all five officers had the one key ingredient to becoming a Marana Police Officer: the desire to help people.
“This profession is way too important to be a job,” Rozema said. “We want to hire people who want to come into this profession to help people.”
Rozema explained that they look for people who not only say they want to help people, but who have actually demonstrated that they have a “dedication for helping people” outside of police work.
The five officers came from a varied background, some were fresh from the academy, while some had previous police experience.
