I need to open this month’s greeting with an apology. Last issue we published the summary of our annual State of the Industry Projection Survey and I completely forgot to express our appreciation to Damascus Gear. Over the past few years, Damascus Gear has partnered with us to offer gloves and other prizes to those who took the time to complete our survey, giving us invaluable information and insight into what the future of our industry holds. I was remiss in not thanking Damascus Gear and would encourage all our readers to visit them online at www.damascusgear.com.
2023 has been a busy and productive year for us here in the Officer Media Group and I’d like to make our readership aware of some of our accomplishments.
We have completed another year of our Station Design Awards program, and you can view the winners in this issue. I need to thank our Editor Paul Peluso for all his hard work on the program and I look forward to seeing how it evolves next year. You’ll also see information from Paul about the annual Michigan State Police vehicle evaluation program. 2024 sees a few changes in patrol vehicle availability and designs, so be sure to check out the information.
This year we have published over 75 podcasts. Some are accompaniment to our magazine content, while others are weekly news review and commentary. We also have the Command Q&A series along with the exclusive Undercover Dad series. We did a six-part series on Active Shooter Event and Response Evolution, sponsored by FirstNet. We look forward to adding more podcasts regarding Active Shooter events, although we all really wish they’d stop happening and we’d have nothing to discuss.
2023 saw more courses added to our Officer Virtual Academy (OVA) and we secured in-service accreditation in the state of Maryland for several of our programs. Efforts are underway to secure that same accreditation in Virginia and 34 other states. Check back through the coming months to see when our OVA courses are approved for in-service in your state.
In 2023 through our new OFFICER Labs program, we awarded seven (as of this writing) products our coveted “Tested-Field Rated” seal of approval. Each item was field tested, proving it performed “as advertised,” and could be counted on when needed. We look forward to performing more such tests in 2024.
As you look forward to 2024, keep in mind the challenges our Thin Blue Line family has faced in 2023. Things are starting to turn around on the budgeting front, but recruiting and retention remains a huge challenge. Talk to each other. Don’t assume you’re alone in any battle you face. By sharing successful strategies we’ve developed, we’ll become stronger. Stay safe as we move into 2024 together.
