Newly-appointed Police Commissioner Jim Hammer addressed about 50 guests at the Annual Luncheon of the San Francisco Patrol Special Police held on January 28. Hammer said that the Patrol Specials provide one key solution to San Francisco's crime and safety needs.

Glen Park community leader Ann Grogan was also honored for her community safety leadership and for her educational outreach efforts on behalf of the Patrol Special Police Association.

Hammer, a Castro district resident and attorney, noted that merchants and neighbors who pay for the services of the Patrol Specials, trust and appreciate their dedicated patrols and rapid response. He pointed out the exemplary patrol service of Officer Jane Warner who has served the Castro for over 18 years.

Grogan was awarded a Certificate of Recognition by the Patrol Specials, by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and by the State Board of Equalization for her contribution to community awareness of the Patrol Special Police, and as a member of the small business community for over twenty years. Grogan owns a home-based Internet fashion business called Romantasy Corsetry.

In late 2008 Grogan organized a small group of residents in Glen Park who were concerned about an increasing crime rate in the formerly bucolic neighborhood. The group surveyed 2000 households and businesses, gathered subscriptions, and hired their first-ever Patrol Special Police Officer.

Officer Calvin Wiley initially patrolled the neighborhood two to four hours, five evenings a week. The program has now expanded to seven days a week.

"We hope to be able to afford a full-time patrol sometime soon this year, and we plan to expand our efforts to be helpful in other ways, such as sponsoring a series of safety awareness/self defense classes," said Grogan.

A former State Attorney, Grogan said the awards were the high point of her business career, similar to an award she received from the California Highway Patrol for a legal case she had won in the past.

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." Grogan quoted World War II Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the officers of the Patrol Special Police after receiving her recognition. She thanked the Patrol Specials for giving back to clients and entire neighborhoods "peace of mind, freedom to go about our business and our lives being productive, and giving back what criminals and wrong-doers would take away such as our spirit and zest for life."

Grogan told the audience when accepting her awards that each person in the room provided one link in the chain of success for the Patrol Specials and for continued community safety. She pointed out that each person was and could be a leader, and that each person's actions and words count to promote the success of the Patrol Specials as a cost-effective, crime-prevention neighborhood policing service.

Supervisorial candidates Rebecca Prozan and Starchild of District 8 and Debra Walker of District 6 attended the luncheon, as did Michael Goldstein, candidate for the San Francisco Board of Education. KRON 4 News reporter Dave Guingona was Master of Ceremonies. The event was organized by San Francisco Patrol Special Police Officer Hanley Chan and included a benefit raffle for Haitian relief.

About San Francisco Patrol Special Police

San Francisco Patrol Special Police are the only private neighborhood safety service in the city that is legally permitted to patrol San Francisco's streets as well as private locations, under the city's municipal code Sec. 1750, and is on police radio frequencies. Patrol Special Police officers are screened by background checks conducted by the S.F.P.D., are trained annually at the San Francisco Police Academy, and regulated by the Police Commission.

Throughout more than a century-and-a-half of unique neighborhood policing, Special Police have supported the City's public safety needs. Patrol Special Police date their history from 1851, during Gold Rush Days. The force was written into the City Charter in 1856. Special Police have assisted city authorities with controlling historical criminal gangs such as the infamous Hounds of San Francisco. Over the years they also maintained public safety during labor strikes, riots, and natural disasters - including the devastating 1906 earthquake.

Today, Patrol Special Police augment the S.F.P.D. by providing neighborhoods with cost-effective and crime prevention services and safety education. Patrol Special Police resolve disturbances at an early stage with a view toward the welfare of all. Their early intervention and visible presence unburden S.F.P.D. officers to address other law enforcement needs. Their services are financed by private clients who include merchants, professionals, homeowners' associations, individual residents, street fair and special event organizers, government agencies, and other business and private organizations.

Photographs from the event are available.

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