SAN ANTONIO—The Bexar County Sheriff's Office wants to draw in baby boomers with a new hiring campaign geared toward older applicants.
The office said in a news release that Urban Dictionary defines "boomer" as "grumpy old people born from 1946-1964." It's something the office said it wants to redefine.
"With the 'Boomer Campaign,' we are specifically targeting an older generation who may have been turned away from other professions due to their age or who may simply want to come out of retirement and begin their second or possibly third career," the release reads.
Unlike other law enforcement agencies, the Bexar County Sheriff's Office does not have a maximum age limit on those they hire and they hire people as young as 18. By comparison, the San Antonio Police Department hires people between the ages of 20 years, 6 months and 45 years old.
Deputy Mark Rodrigue, 63, said in a promotional sheriff's office video that he always had an interest in law enforcement but thought the window of opportunity had closed before he learned that there was no age limit at BCSO. Rodrigue started at the office when he was 59; KSAT News at the time reported that he was the oldest BCSO cadet.
"But at my age, again, it was a concern," Rodrigue said in the BCSO video. "And also, I had just come off of having stage 4 cancer in my neck. So I kind of looked at it as a challenge. It made me more determined to accept this challenge because I wanted to prove to myself that I could get back from that."
Rodrigue worked at a local YMCA when he met Sheriff Javier Salazar and decided to apply for a job. But before that, BCSO said on Facebook, Rodrigue was a training instructor in the Air Force. When he graduated from the detention academy, Rodrigue worked in the detention center then transferred to the law enforcement division before settling into his current position as an academy instructor.
The Sheriff's Office touted a 2 for 1 retirement program in which employees are vested after 8 years. People who are interested in applying can reach out to the office by calling (210) 335-JOBS.
___
(c)2021 the San Antonio Express-News
Visit the San Antonio Express-News at www.mysanantonio.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
