I hope this last article of 2021 finds all our members healthy and happy. This has been a tough year for law enforcement, especially for the LVMPD. We lost three of our officers and one sergeant to COVID. I never thought in my 23 years here at LVMPD that we would be losing officers to a deadly disease. As officers, we prepare for dangerous and violent encounters all year long. But this COVID sickness has become a deadly encounter that, in some people, you can not prepare for. We do not know how many more people COVID will take from us, but I am hopeful we can come through this point in our lives in a positive way.

The PPA has been able to start rolling out our usual events for our members and their families with the restrictions easing up on gatherings. We look forward to our first-ever partnership with Opportunity Village for our Santa Day event. Look for the flyer for this event (see page 15), as it will be one of a kind for our membership. We are also happy to roll out our response to New Year’s Eve. Last year, 50% of the Executive Board was quarantined with COVID, and we were unable to do our normal New Year’s Eve experience. This year, health permitting, we will have our normal three stations of food and hot beverages rolled out to support your efforts on the Strip and downtown.

We had several retirements this past year as well. I am always happy to attend our officers’ retirement events, as it means one more officer was able to make it through this career safely and is allowed to enjoy their time free of law enforcement. Congratulations to all of those officers who are successfully navigating waking up when you want and not needing to report to a work shift.

Make 2022 the year of trying the things that scare you the most, whether it’s testing to promote or testing for that specialized unit.

One retirement that is especially important to our membership, as well as to me, is the retirement of Brian Grammas. Brian is my older brother and a person who I have always looked up to in my life. He came to the Executive Board of the PPA in 2017 and has spent the last four years working on our Health Trust, working as our treasurer and assisting members in their IAB interviews, as well as being our expert on the Citizen Review Board. I know he has enjoyed his time here at the PPA, helping members and bringing his sense of humor to the Executive Board, which made coming to work every day enjoyable. Brian will be missed by all of us, but probably no one more than me. Being able to work with my brother has really been an honor for me. We served together in Narcotics, and we serve together now as he closes out his career after 25 years in law enforcement. Please, shoot BG a text or email congratulating him on his retirement coming up December 28. Love you, brother. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. I hope you all continue to strive for greatness in everything you do. Make 2022 the year of trying the things that scare you the most, whether it’s testing to promote or testing for that specialized unit. Make this the year you go for it. There was a movie quote where someone said, “You regret 100% of the chances you didn’t take.” Take a chance in 2022! Thank you all for your membership and continued support of the LVPPA.