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May2010_sbacvr_Frontline03_Cover 5/3/10 12:58 PM Page FC3 A P UBLICATIONOFTHE N Y C S ERGEANTS B ENEVOLENT A SSOCIATION VOLUME VIII/ ISSUE I • 2010 May2010_sbacvr_Frontline03_Cover 5/3/10 12:58 PM Page In2 FRONTLINE A Publication of the NYC Sergeants Benevolent Association Ed Mullins, President Produced by REM Multi Communications, LLC Robert Mladinich, President Sgt. Brenda Graham, 34 Pct Sgt. Christopher Sharpe, PSA 6 Phone: 212-477-4915 E-mail: [email protected] Writer/Editor Robert Mladinich Photography (unless otherwise noted) Robert Mladinich Walter Taylor On the Cover George Martin, the tri-captain of the 1986 Super Bowl Champion New York Giants, and SBA President Ed Mullins visited Sgt. Peter Hseih, OCCB Sgt. Omar Velez, 13 Pct PO Robert Salerno of the 44 Precinct at Lincoln Hospital on March 30. PO Salerno was shot and seriously wounded on March 22, while responding to a domestic dispute. See the President’s Message on page 2 for more. SpecialNYPD Photo Unit © 2010 NYC Sergeants Benevolent Association All rights reserved Sgt. Tinel Bedford, Det. Bureau Sgt. Arline Narucki, 20 Pct NYC Sergeants Benevolent Association 35 Worth Street New York, NY 10013 Phone: 212-226-2180 Fax: 212-431-4280 Health & Welfare phone: 212-431-6555 Health & Welfare fax: 212-431-6487 Hotline: 1-866-862-0695 Web site: www.sbanyc.org Sgt. Paulette Clemmons, PBMN Sgt. Todd D'Andrea, MISD May2010_toc_302interview_f2.qxd 5/4/10 10:06 AM Page 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Eight days after being shot and seriously wounded while responding to a domestic dispute, PO Robert Salerno of the 44 Precinct was vis- ited in the hospital by SBA President Ed Mullins and George Martin, the tri-captain of the 1986 Super Bowl champion New York Giants. Besides being an exemplary police officer, PO Salerno is a diehard Giants fan. A P UBLIC ATIO N O F THE N YC S ERG EANTS B ENEVOLENT A SSOCIATIO N VOLUME VIII/ ISSUE I • 2010 Capitol Hill Watch SBA Vice President Bob Ganley has led several delegations to Washington, D.C. to lobby for the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. His hard work seems to be paying off as the bill continues to advance in Congress. 4 Pipes & Drums The Pipes & Drums celebrated its 50th anniversary in April. Requests for the granddaddy of all service bands continue to pour in from around the globe, and no one has ever said a 10 performance from the band has not made them feel better. SBA Profiles: Catching Up With the Board Board members Robert Johnson, Maureen Murphy, Gary DeRosa, Jerry Leary, Paul Capotosto, Vincent Vallelong and John Dorst have been instrumental in the tremendous success of the SBA. Read about their steadfast commitment to the members they serve. 12 Faces of the SBA Meet some of the Faces of the SBA as they make a very difficult job look easy supervising thousands of police personnel and protecting 16 millions of revelers on New Year’s Eve and at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. OTHER ARTICLES & FEATURES President’s Message . 2 Tribute to our Troops . 22 Your Finances: Investing in DRIPS. 7 Proud to be an SBA Member & Friend . 24 Health & Welfare. 8 Birth Announcements . 30 Eating Right: The Basic Challenges . 18 In Memoriam . 31 On the Job Fitness: Third in a Series . 20 Special Thanks to our Sponsors . 32 May2010_pgs2thru32_Frontline 5/4/10 9:41 AM Page 2 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE SBA PRESIDENT, ED MULLINS Dear Sergeants: During the cash-strapped times that we are current- There has been no shortage of other such heroes in ly living in, the media keeps harping on the possibility recent months, tried and true police officers who are of the city returning to what they love to call the “Bad always willing to fight back. Old Days.” In a scathing two-page article in the April In early December, Sgt. Christopher Newsom of 11 edition of the New York Daily News, they recount- the Midtown South Precinct became engaged with a ed the doom and gloom of the year 1990, replete with man armed with an automatic weapon. Despite graphic images of frightening headlines, dead bodies, repeated admonitions by Sgt. Newsom for the gun- and an RMP that had been overturned by rioters. man to drop his weapon, he refused to do so and even While we are undoubtedly living in challenging opened fire. As terrified onlookers and holiday shop- times, I couldn’t disagree more with the media’s assess- pers looked on, Sgt. Newsom was forced to fatally ment of current conditions. So many dedicated police shoot the man in front of the Marriott Marquis hotel, officers, as well as their union organizations, have been in the heart of Times Square. fighting back on many fronts with determination, zeal and ingenuity. More recently, PO Tara Hayes of the 63 Precinct saved the life of her partner, when she fatally shot a In late March, I visited PO Robert Salerno of the 44 heavily armed parolee who pointed a loaded gun at his Precinct at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, where he face and pulled the trigger. Thankfully, the gun mis- was being treated for gunshot wounds he received fired but the assailant had other weapons on his person. while responding to a domestic dispute on March 22. There is no doubt that PO Hayes’ exemplary actions The assailant was shot dead by Officer Salerno’s fellow saved the lives of herself and others. officers. Having been told that PO Salerno was a diehard When many of our elected officials and other gov- New York Giants fan, I asked George Martin, a ernment bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. were balk- 14-year veteran of the National Football League, ing at or completely stonewalling HR 847, the “James tri-captain of the 1986 Super Bowl champion Giants, Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act,” which and a great friend of the SBA, to accompany me. would guarantee benefits to sick, injured and deceased rescue and recovery workers, SBA Vice George recently walked 3003 miles across the President Bob Ganley led several delegations of law United States to raise money for sick and injured 9/11 enforcement union board members to our nation’s rescue and recovery workers. It is hard to imagine a capitol. person possessing as much positive energy as the eter- nally optimistic Martin, but PO Salerno could give Working with Representatives Carolyn Maloney, him a run for his money. Jerrold Nadler, Michael McMahon and other Members of the New York delegation, the legislation Although PO Salerno faces a long rehabilitative is getting closer and closer to becoming law. process, his optimism, good humor, and gritty deter- mination to get better, and get back to work, was very While we would ordinarily be thanking Rep. inspiring. He is truly one of New York’s Finest, and Maloney, who is the lead sponsor in this much-need- speaking for the entire SBA membership I wish him a ed legislation, what speaks volumes about Bob’s com- speedy and full recovery from his serious injuries. mitment to this cause is the fact that it was Rep. 2 WEAR YOUR VEST FRONTLINE: A Publication of the NYC Sergeants Benevolent Association May2010_pgs2thru32_Frontline 5/4/10 9:41 AM Page 3 Maloney who actually thanked him for his stalwart The SBA has also established relationships with efforts and unyielding support. scores of educational institutions, who offer discount- The SBA has been at the forefront in aggressively ed tuition or other benefits to our members. These pursuing improvements in World Trade Center-relat- include Columbia University, Long Island University, ed health services for officers of all ranks. Because the Seton Hall University, Cornell University, Marist SBA is on the advisory board of the WTC Law College, Mercy College, Monroe College, Manhattan Enforcement Cardiovascular Screening Program at College, John Jay College, and Iona College. If you are the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Health and interested in attending any of these institutions, I Welfare Secretary Jerry Leary has spent an inordinate strongly suggest that you see what they are offering on amount of time strategizing about how to make this our web site. already tremendous program even better. When the nation was about to be thrust into a reces- Among many other things, Jerry was instrumental in sion, the likes of which has not been experienced since having a clinical site established in Staten Island, the Great Depression, the SBA was able to solidify a where a large number of ailing rescue and recovery contract that was worth 28.26 percent. This could not personnel work or reside. have been done without the tremendous support of the The SBA has also fought back against the always membership, who overwhelmingly approved the con- increasing costs of prescription drugs. By creating our tract by a 3-1 margin. The contract, which runs own non-profit Prescription Benefit Manager (PBM) through July 31, 2011, did not contain any givebacks called True Health Benefits, we have been able to to the city. eliminate the middleman, which is the key reason for the dramatic upsurges in drug costs. And once we found ourselves mired in the recession, the SBA established what we call our Stimulus Our ingenuity in creating this company, coupled Package, which is an association with Continental with our long-time oversight of our entire Health and Welfare Fund, has reaped great dividends. At a time Home Loans Inc. to provide discounted mortgages to when unions across the country are cutting or elimi- members through the very successful National Law nating benefits altogether to their members, the SBA Enforcement Home Loan program.