Wellesley Chief of Police, Terrance Cunningham spoke to Rotary February 24th

President Mitch Freeman introduced our guest speaker, Chief of Police Terry Cunningham. He commented on “a room full of friends”, and his experience growing up in Wellesley and how it has helped him “know the town.” He gave us an update on the Wellesley Police Department which is a “unique organization, respected and they respect each other.” The purpose, of course, is to keep people alive and safe, to protect property. They are there to serve. He covered many topics of interest including: much needed assistance during the storms; overdose issues in town including the increasing prevalence of heroin at the High School; fraud and the impact of schemes on the internet including identity theft. Relations with townspeople is very important citing what has happened recently nationally in the news media. His police force is trained to treat individuals, “as if they are ’a million dollars’”, i.e., with respect. Terry is recognized as a leader nationally with his responsibilities with a police chief organization. They recognize their great responsibility and diversity of communities. He touched on privacy rights and local traffic issues. Many thoughtful Q&A’s ended this informative meeting.