115 Boston Police Recruits To Graduate

BOSTON — As families, friends and staff cheered them on, some 115 recruits of class 58-18 rounded the bend and jogged past Boston Police Headquarters with a motorcycle escort, before they filed military-style onto the plaza. It was their last workout together as recruits before they graduate Wednesday morning.

"58-18," said Boston Police Commissioner William Gross to the sea of blue lined up four rows deep facing him and a memorial to fallen police officers. "We bring you to this spot for a reason. That memorial right there. These are your brothers and sister officers that made the ultimate sacrifice."

Earlier, as the recruits warmed up for their final and longest run, the commissioner reminded them that Boston has the oldest police department in the country, founded in 1854. The run, he said, was a time honored tradition that Gross himself had participated in in the 1980s.

Along the route, the recruits called and repeated and one carried the academy flag.

The class is called 58-18 because they are the 58th class of recruits to go through the some seven months of training that brings them to graduation. They started the final program in 2018.

But many have been preparing long before that if you ask their families.

"This is something he's wanted to do since he was a little kid," said Brenda DiPiro, of Roslindale, who took a couple hours off from her job Monday to come out and cheer on her son, Matthew, 24. When he was younger he participated in a Navy Seal Cadet Corp for teens, she said.

"I know how much he's worked for this," she said, adding she's watched him study and train with friends that he's made at the academy.

The symbolism of the image of the recruits running down Tremont Street in unison gave her goosebumps, she said.

"This is their glory. Their last run as a group, and to the mother house," she said.

Nearby Debbie Lang, who also happens to be from Roslindale and works for the police department, said the cadets who went through the apprenticeship have become like family to each other and to the staff there.

DiPiro agrees. She says she showed up at the start to watch the recruits step off on their run in Hyde Park, with the plan of catching them and watching again about halfway. She saw a detail officer along the route and stopped to ask if they had passed by yet. They hadn't. So together they waited and when her son jogged by the officer cheered with her.

"He yelled out across the street 'Welcome to the family'," said Dipiro. That made an impact on her, she said.

Family was a central theme when the recruits made it to Schroeder Plaza where headquarters is located.

"This is the Boston Police Department. You are now family. Family. You will go forward and you will serve well," Gross told the recruits. "There will be no difference between sworn and civilian we are all a family of blue. As well, our community is with us."

After the recruits listened to Gross, they filed past the memorial to the fallen police officers and placed a hand on the memorial.

When the last recruit walked away, the crowd of proud friends and families applauded.

Lynda Hosea, of Dorchester, came out to watch her son. The recruit class opened just when he turned 21, so he was able to slide in, she said, adding he's always wanted to be a police officer to help others.

"He says if he can make a difference in the life of one person it's worth it. He's a great kid and he's going to be a great cop," she said.

She acknowledges police work isn't the safest field he could have chosen. But she said she supports him.

"I just trust. He can get hurt crossing the street, so anything can happen. So we will take it one day at a time. And honestly, I pray a lot," she said.

But knowing the amount of training that has led to this point also helps.

"I can't believe the training they got. It's a lot of physical and academic work. It's vigorous and it takes a lot of hard work. And he worked his butt off — they all did," she said.

The recruits will join the some 1,485 patrol officers in the ranks Boston Police Department Wednesday morning. Before graduation there were some 2,182 sworn officers, including lieutenants and captains, according to police data. Though it's not clear how many will be retiring this year.

"We're doing more with less," Gross told Patch. "As the population grows, so does your police department. It should. Some people are hyper critical of that, but they're not the ones that went to several funerals last year of our officers (who) died."

The incoming officers are part of the department's wellness program. The more people in the streets means less overtime and less stress on the officers, Gross said.

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).