The Taylorville Kiwanis Club heard from one of 2 Taylorville Police School Resource Officers at their weekly meeting on Tuesday at the Taylorville Moose Lodge.
Sergeant Alan Mills, a 20-year-veteran of the Taylorville Police Department, is the School Resource Officer at Taylorville High School and Memorial Elementary School. Sargent Mills gave an outline of why more and more school districts around the country have law enforcement officers in their buildings as a deterrent to gun violence in schools.
Sergeant Mills said the Columbine, Colorado High School shootings changed the landscape for schools nationwide. Today, over 65-percent of the country’s schools have a School Resource Officer, with over 50-thousand in schools across the United States.
He complimented the Taylorville School District and Administration for the great cooperation he’s received. In addition to having a presence in the 2 schools, he serves as crossing guard at the busy Springfield Street crosswalk at the high school, and speaks to classes on law enforcement.
He told Kiwanis members it was thru a combined effort between he and school officials, that made the discovery of a look-alike pistol in a student’s possession. He showed the club a picture of the gun and described the events that unfolded:
You can help the Taylorville Kiwanis Club raise money for their many projects benefiting children and youth, by purchasing tickets for their annual Kiwanis Pancake and Sausage Breakfast Saturday, April 27th at the Moose Lodge. Advance tickets are available from Kiwanis members, at Taylorville Community Credit Union, People's Bank and Trust Taylorville branch, and the Greater Taylorville Chamber of Commerce office on the square. They can also be purchased the day of the event at the door. Proceeds benefit such Kiwanis projects as Coats for Kids, Kiwanis Park, high school and Y-M-C-A scholarships, and helping fund other local non-profit organizations with similar goals.
The Taylorville Kiwanis Club is part of a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world one child and one community at a time. Weekly meetings are held Tuesdays at noon at the Taylorville Moose Lodge. For information on the club, go to taylorvillekiwanis.com.
