Police union honors officers at reception

The University's chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police honored their own with an awards ceremony held yesterday afternoon in the Smith-Penniman Room of Houston Hall. As part of the informal ceremony, 21 Certificates of Recognition were awarded for specific exemplary acts, usually involving the pursuit and apprehension of armed felons. "These officers made good felony arrests," said Hugh McBreen, treasurer of the chapter. "It was good police work and they deserve everything they get." Officer Phil Lydon and Officer Tracy Thomas were commended for answering a Philadelphia Police report and arresting two rape suspects a considerable distance off campus. "We're doing our job, that's it," Lydon said. "The community needs to recognize us as police officers," he added, emphasizing that members of the University Police Department are fully qualified law enforcement officers. Many officers present expressed regret that the University does not make more of an effort to recognize its police officers. "I would like to see more recognition of deserving officers by the University," said Leonard Harrison, a trustee of the University's chapter of the FOP. "A lot of officers do very good jobs and deserve rewards." University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich, who did not attend the ceremony, said later that the officers' actions are an example of the "fantastic work that takes place here everyday." He also pointed out that the University has in place an employee recognition process, but that it has not been used effectively by supervisors recently.