Summer job paved road to become police officer
It was the summer of 2008 that changed Cory Raposo’s life, leading him down the path to becoming a police officer.
He was 17 that summer, between Grades 11 and 12 at Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School, when he was hired under the Youth in Policing Initiative (YIPI) — an eight-week summer job at the Hamilton Police Service for teens from six “priority” neighbourhoods.
“That’s where it all started,” he said.
After that summer Raposo went on to study police foundations at Mohawk College, began his career with the Hamilton police about three years ago as a special constable at the courthouse and then, about a year and a half ago, became a police officer. Now he works as a constable in east-end patrol.
“I wake up every day and I’m excited to go to work,” he said.
The YIPI program has been running since 2007, hiring approximately 50 students who have worked in facilities, traffic, records, human resources and community mobilization, said police spokesperson Jackie Penman.
This year, Hamilton police are
hiring up to five students. The application deadline is June 3.
Before that summer Raposo said he’d been thinking about pursuing policing or become a mechanic, when a teacher suggested he apply. He ended up working that entire summer with the police maintenance crew.
He said the job, where he also got to meet the canine and marine
units, showed him “the person behind the uniform.”
It gave him an understanding of a healthy family and the importance of mental health, he said. He learned time management, organization, attention to detail and other skills.