Class of 18 Corrections Officers Graduate

COURT HOUSE – They’ll spend new careers behind bars supervising inmates, checking for contraband and maintaining order in four South Jersey county correctional centers. Those jobs take a certain type of individual, and are not ones just anyone could or would want to have, said Freeholder Leonard Desiderio to the graduates. ‘You know that this is not an ordinary, standard job, one few people can handle,” he said.
They were 18 members of the third Basic Course for County Corrections Officers from the Cape May County Public Safety Training Center who took oaths of office Nov. 29 from Freeholder Leonard Desiderio at Middle Township Performing Arts Center during graduation ceremonies.
Class President Matthew Kilroy, of Cape May County Sheriff’s Office gave the class response after Sheriff Gary Schaffer delivered the keynote address.
The recruits began their rigorous road to jails on Sept. 17. During the ensuing 11 weeks, they lost weight, gained muscles, learned tactics that they will use every day working with inmates in Cape May, Atlantic, Cumberland and Salem counties.
Pastor Scott Durbin of Church of the Nazarene, Erma delivered the invocation and Benediction.
When the class convened, there were 24 recruits who arrived at the county Police Academy. On the first day, recruits heard instructors give a sample what they could expect in the following weeks. The class then went through a crash course of marching.
“Each recruit feeling angst and worry about the challenges that were going to lie ahead throughout this academy,” according to the message from the class in the program.
“For the next 11 weeks, the class went through many challenges that would prove to be too difficult to some recruits to handle. The difficulty of the classroom education, the intensity of physical training, the pressure of the firearms range, and the preciseness of military drill would be difficult for all recruits to handle as the weeks continued.
“There were no longer individuals in this class, but a group of recruits coming together, realizing they had a common goal, to become Corrections Officers. The recruits that remain were forced to strengthen their weaknesses and reinforce their strengths throughout and are here today not only as individuals going back to their respective counties but as a unit, bounded for life by this amazing experience,” it continued.
The class started with an overall physical fitness score of 52 percent. They finished with a final physical fitness average of 71.5 percent. Recruit Joseph Sipple of the Cape May County Sheriff’s Department received the Fitness Award with a score of 95 percent.
The class finished with an academic average of 90.67 percent. Receiving the academic award and finishing number one in the class was Recruit Matthew Kilroy of the Cape May County Sheriff’s Department with a score of 95.78 percent.
Also, the class finished with a final firearms average of 96.1 percent and Recruit Matthew Kilroy of the Cape May County Sheriff’s Department also won this award with a score of 100 percent. Additionally, Recruit Kilroy received the Director’s Award for finishing number one overall in the class.The class motto was “Do not wish for an easy path, but rather the strength to endure a tough one.”
Atlantic County Department of Public Safety:
Alwyn A. Pasagui
Matthew J. Roscovich
Genise N. Taylor
Cape May County Sheriff’s Office
Thomas C. Cook
Harry J. Godfrey
Matthew M. Kilroy
Michele A. Ogden
Joseph J. Sippel
Cumberland County Department of Corrections
Crystalyn N. Gonzalez
Darrin A. Harris
Justina L. Moore
Salem County Sheriff’s Office
Carlos A. De La Paz
Bryan G. Dorrell
Edward G. Kloepping II
James M. Marich Jr.
Richard L. McAllister Jr.
Kyle J. Matthews
Kristopher J. Oliver