Contribute to the safety of Modesto through volunteer programs with the police

If you're a parent - or even just a dedicated citizen - the safety of your community will be a major priority. As a recent transplant to a home from the Modesto real estate listings, you have a number of prominent opportunities available to you if you're interested in working personally to help ensure that safety. These are under the supervision of the Modesto Police Department.

The Reserve Officer program involves the most serious commitment of time and dedication, and unlike the other citizen law enforcement opportunities it does involve monetary compensation. If you have previous experience in this field and don't necessarily want to be a full-time cop, being a reserve officer might be ideal.

As a purely volunteer opportunity, there's Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS). This requires no prior experience and fairly nominal training, though if you join you'll still be expected to help with local patrol duties, clerical work, data entry, assisting neighborhood watch groups and providing aid to senior citizens. As long as you're over 18 and can serve 10 hours a month, you can join.

Finally, young people between the ages of 16 and 21 years old who are considering police work as a career might want to try the Police Department's Explorer Post #219 program. Through this initiative, you'll learn about the basic nature of work as a Modesto police officer, and be trained alongside major police units to get a feel for the multifacted nature of the department.