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By Paul Marik for Police1 BrandFocus
What is a quiet warrior? Every day, police officers across this great country do many acts of heroism — yet they rarely get accolades. You’ve heard officers describe it as “I’m just doing my job” or “it was a team effort.” Forever shying away from recognition for the little (and big) things our men and women do to break the ideological mold. Quiet warriors are the people who make their community better by taking the job one step further and seeking out kinship with their community while still being the protector.
If you ponder it — and I mean really chew it down to the bone — it is a manner of carrying oneself with an air of silent confidence. A quiet warrior is someone who has a fervent and almost maddening desire to protect, with ferocity if needed, and yet still have the poise to never act indecorous.
They will have fine-tuned this aspect of their lives almost to the point of making people underestimate them. A quiet warrior never wants a fight but is always the first in line when it comes.
The Decision to Act
Captain Michael Bolender from the Oak Creek (Wis.) Police Department is a textbook example of a quiet warrior. A consummate trainer and a dedicated professional who continually strives to make his officers and community better. Mike handled the incident command for the Sikh temple shooting(s). Although you did not know that fact, that alone would qualify him for the title.
During the funeral for the victims of the Sikh Temple he was watching the parade of hearses drive through his city. It was at that moment he committed himself to doing something to help citizens protect themselves against violent attacks before the police arrive.
Mike decided right then and there that he was would devote the rest of his life to helping citizens protect themselves. He now runs a training cadre for civilians and companies who would like to know more about how they can protect themselves from violent attacks.
“If we can help people protect themselves, then maybe we will not have to see another parade of hearses drive through our streets,” he said.
He has invested thousands of dollars of his own money to bring cutting edge training to civilians to help them recognize and survive danger. He has sought no praise.
The Quietest of Warriors
Pleasant Prairie Officer Sanford Severson is a quiet warrior. Not the type you might think, more of an Officer Bob Hodges (if you were born after 1988 rent the movie COLORS and you’ll see the reference). Sanford is a quiet, intelligent and soft spoken man who goes out every day and does his best for those in his community. Sanford takes his training seriously and is a veteran officer that other look up to.
On a cold December morning in 2015 Sanford jumped a medical call and arrived before rescue. There he found a man no longer breathing and without a pulse. Sanford performed CPR for more than four minutes before paramedics arrived. Sanford is credited for saving the man’s life.
An award ceremony followed for Sanford which he was not in favor of (it should be noted that getting him to allow me to write this piece about him was also met with the same resistance). You see, the word quiet does not mean that these people are without a voice. Quite the contrary, when they speak most people shut up. The “quiet” is more of a mindset. The “attention-seeking, in-it-for-the-glory” types are not quiet warriors.
The Quiet Warriors Among You
You’ve never heard of the two aforementioned officers. That is because they are not in this for recognition. They are in it because it is the noble fight — the right thing to do and the way to make things better. These actions will never make for a viral news video, but make no mistake, it is news. It is the news concerning the psyche of the officer of 2016 — the officer that will shed the old guard attitude and embrace a philosophy of building bridges and changing attitudes.
Think about the men and women in your department. Have any of them ever saved a group of children from depraved living conditions and had a little eight-year-old girl hug them and say “thank you for rescuing us?” Has anyone ever stopped out at the local car wash fundraiser and get their squad cleaned? Have you rescued a stray dog and stopped at McDonalds for him before going to the humane society? Who has saved a life? Who has trained officers so that they can save a life? What SRO out there has ever showed off their dance moves at the senior prom? What officer has spent the time to fix the sink at the 90-year-old lady’s house before leaving?
Those are all examples of the little things you do every day to make your cities great. Those things make you a quiet warrior.
The satisfaction for a quiet warrior isn’t the front page news article. It is not the media interview or the award ceremonies. It is about the smile you get as you “quietly” get back in your car and go somewhere else to do it all over again. The impact you have on your public is tremendous. The Quiet Warriors of this country have a big voice — use it.
Lieutenant Paul Marik is a 20-year veteran of law enforcement who began his career working undercover straight out of the academy. He has worked all facets of the job including School Resource Officer, SWAT, Narcotics, Patrol, Field Training (FTO), and he is currently a Lieutenant Commander with the Pleasant Prairie (Wis.) Police Department. Paul has been with the PPPD since 1997 and is the senior trainer for the department. Paul holds a BS in Management of Criminal Justice and an MBA. He is a state-wide instructor for Firearms, Defense & Arrest Tactics, Use of Force, Deadly Force Decision Making, Dry-Fire, Low Light Shooting, Honor Guard, and Tactical Functional Training.
Paul is also a Master Instructor in Tactical Response and a Certified Force Science Analyst (FSI). He is currently a 15year member (senior operator) of the Kenosha County Tactical Response Team (SWAT). He is recognized in his region as a use of force analyst and has investigated several use-of-force situations involving officers in southeastern Wisconsin.
Paul is a current member of the International Law Enforcement Trainers Association (ILEETA), Midwest Tactical Officers Association (MTOA), and the Wisconsin Honor Guard Association (WHGA).