By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press
Fresh on the heels of his graduation from the Bravo Class of the Central Texas College Police Academy, 2022 Copperas Cove High School alumnus Joseph A. Gallegos was sworn in as the newest police officer at Texas A & M University Central Texas last Thursday afternoon.
Gallegos was sworn in by Chief of Police Andew Flores, who also served as the keynote speaker for the police academy graduation ceremony the previous Friday.
Gallegos is no stranger to the Texas A&M Central Texas campus but has worked there since he was 17 years old, when he started as a part-time security officer.
“We’ve seen his talent. He was patrolling every day. It was always something that he was here. I noticed that talent. He was able to be promoted to TCO, a telecommunications officer where he worked until he came to the age of 21, to go to the academy. Once he was there, again, we noticed the talent that he had. He had shown a talent for service, to serve our community every day with a good attitude,” said Flores.
Flores said that he pointed out Gallegos to his boss, and discussed sending him to the academy, and there was a lot of support from the leadership to send him to become a police officer.
“We could see that he could go and become a good police officer. So we approached him, said, ‘Hey, you want to do this?’ He was like, ‘Oh yeah, this is my childhood dream. I’m ready to do this.’ So, it’s an honor to be able to be a part of that dream and see it come to fruition today.”
Flores then read a quote that he said he reads to his students at the beginning of the semester, because they talk about what it is to be a warrior and in law enforcement, Flores said, noting that sometimes there is a bad connotation with being a warrior.
“Warriors aren’t what you think they are. The warrior is not someone who fights, because no one has the right to take another life just for the sake of fighting. The warrior for us is one who sacrifices himself for the good of others. His task is to take care of the elderly, the defenseless, those who cannot provide for themselves, and above all, the children, the future of humanity.
“It’s somebody who stands up for the people who need it. When we look at our police officers, and I see Joseph, he embodies that warrior spirit, that I’m here for my community.”
Gallegos is also continuing his family’s legacy of law enforcement.
After being sworn in, Gallegos had his badge pinned by his father, who served in the military as a police officer and now serves as a civilian police officer on Fort Hood.
“In high school, I took every criminal justice class I could,” said Gallegos. “My father is the reason I got into law enforcement. I grew up not necessarily knowing a lot about law enforcement, but I knew my father was. I love my dad, and he’s the best example I have. I want to try to be half the man my dad is.”
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