Man wants to honor police officers

Boynton Beach resident George Acaley is on a mission to deliver something special to every police department that has lost an officer in the line of duty.

Every police officer in the county. In the state. And in the country.

The something special? A framed certificate of late radio broadcaster Paul Harvey’s “What Are Policemen Made Of ?” speech — a tribute to the officers.

Acaley, 83, thought of the idea a few months ago. He was listening to the radio and heard the speech. He thought: “Boy, that’s something the police really need.”

“Police were being shot all the time and I thought morale must be down,” Acaley said.

Since then, he’s contacted departments that have lost officers to arrange for them to receive the certificates. He keeps a small notebook with contact information.

“San Antonio. This is when four died in one week,” he Alexandra Seltzer says while flipping through. “Missouri,” he adds. He has thank yous from David Pughes, the interim chief of police in Dallas, and from David A. Clarke Jr., the sheriff of Milwaukee County.

To spread the word, Acaley also has given certificates to police officers who are living. He recently handed some to Boynton Beach police, and is working with the Palm Beach County Sheriff ’s Office to do the same. Acaley also gave out several in Pennsylvania, where he is from.

But Acaley has realized this is a bigger job than he imagined; he never knew how many officers there are. So he needs help and money to do the job. Wal-Mart, Office Depot and Staples have pitched in before in supplying frames and making copies, he said.

Eventually, he wants every officer — living or dead — to have a certificate.

A few lines of from the speech he is handing out:

“The police officer must know every gun, draw on the run, and hit where it doesn’t hurt. He must be able to whip two men twice his size and half his age without damaging his uniform and without being “brutal.” If you hit him ... he’s a coward. If he hits you ... he’s a bully.

The policeman, from a single human hair, must be able to describe the crime, the weapon, the criminal and tell you where the criminal is hiding. But ... if he catches the criminal, he’s lucky; if he doesn’t, he is a dunce.

He runs files and writes reports until his eyes ache, to build a case against some felon who will get “dealed out” by a shameless shamus.

The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy and a gentleman.

And of course, he’ll have to be a genius ... for he will have to feed a family on a policeman’s salary.”

Anyone who wants to help Acaley, or wants a certificate, should contact him at 570573-0242.