August 1999 Volume 80 Number 8
"serving the protectors"
| August 1999 Volume 80 Number 8 "serving the protectors" |
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| Long-Serving Police Honoured | |
| By John Ballantyne |
wenty-eight retiring police officers and their spouses enjoyed a dinner held in their honour at the Adelaide Hilton on June 26.
The annual dinner is part of a PASA tradition going back more than 50 years.
This year’s dinner, which was supported by the Police Credit Union, took place in the sumptuous surrounds of the Hilton’s Banquet Room.
Present at the occasion were distinguished guests, including Mr Justice Robin Millhouse; the Commissioner, Mr Mal Hyde; and the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Neil McKenzie.
The internationally-acclaimed SA Police Band (which is due to appear at the prestigious millennium Edinburgh Military Tattoo next year) provided a rousing start to the evening.
PASA secretary, Mr Andy Dunn, as Master of Ceremonies, opened the formal part of the evening, declaring that the dinner was a special opportunity to pay tribute to retiring members and to celebrate their distinguished careers.
PASA president, Mr Peter Alexander, then delivered a speech of welcome. He reflected on the retiring members’ “great many years of combined experience” and paid particular tribute to the members’ spouses for their valued support over the years. He spoke of the police family and of the support on which members can always depend:
“When we get sick we share our sick leave; we look after the families in time of tragedy; we defend those wrongly accused; and in times of adversity we pull together.”
Commissioner Mal Hyde, in his toast to the retiring members, spoke of the high public esteem in which SA police are held. He quoted the results of a recent Morgan poll on professional ethics and honesty in which police were reported as being one of the six most respected professions in Australia. Even more significant were the figures for South Australia in which SA police scored one of the very highest national ratings.
Mr Hyde said that the current generation of retiring police could take much credit for this singular achievement.
Mr Hyde concluded his tribute by reading the poem, I’m Just a Man Like You (adjacent column).
Later in the evening, Police Credit Union Chairman, MrÊPeter Graham, delivered a speech in which he traced the PCU’s remarkable growth from its modest beginnings 30 years ago - a lifespan which coincided with the careers of most of the retiring police officers being honoured.
Today, the PCU is close to being a $200 million asset business and is well recognised by the credit union movement throughout Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific islands.
I’m Just a Man Like You
I have been where you fear to be,
I have seen what you fear to see,
I have done what you fear to do,
All these things I have done for you.
I am the man you lean upon,
The man you cast your scorn upon,
The man you bring your troubles to,
All these men I have been for you.
The man you ask to stand apart,
The man you feel should have no heart,
The man you call the man in blue,
But I’m just a man like you.
And through the years, I’ve come to see
That I am not what you ask of me,
So take this badge, take this gun,
Will you take it? - Will anyone?
And when you watch a person die,
And hear a battered baby cry,
Then do you think that you can be
All these things you ask of me?
Mr Graham reminded PASA members that they, the members, were the owners of this enterprise and that the PCU’s success today was “not a bad effort for a bunch of coppers.”
The evening concluded with Peter Alexander and Andy Dunn presenting the retiring members with special Police Association plaques to commemorate their years of service.
Of the 28 retiring members who were present, 24 of them had retired this year and four had retired the previous year. The longest serving member had served some 42 years.
Each of the retiring members present, on receiving their plaque, said a few words.
A particular highlight was Frank Fairney’s speech in which he reminisced about his career. He recalled the time when he applied to join the police at the age of 29. At the job interview, he was asked, “Why do you want to be a policeman?” Frank replied that he liked to be involved with people. Frank then asked his interviewer why he (the interviewer) had become a policeman. The latter replied, “I love to see the sun rise over the Torrens.” Frank mused, “I wonder where he slept?!”
Once the presentations were over, the retiring members assembled on the grand staircase of the Hilton foyer for a group photograph.
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