AUBURN – Auburn police Chief Phil Crowell was the featured speaker at the Oct. 8 meeting of the Auburn-Lewiston Rotary Breakfast Club.

Crowell addressed the gathering of local business owners, professionals and retirees about the impact that community volunteers can have on the Auburn Police Department.

“VIPS volunteers support what our sworn officers and staff do on a day-to-day basis,” said Crowell. “They help us maximize our resources and allow officers and staff to concentrate on their primary duties. This program gives residents of Auburn the opportunity to give back to their community and to support the APD.”

VIPS – which stands for Volunteers in Police Service – is a national program for citizens who want to help build safer, stronger communities by volunteering with local law enforcement. The VIPS program’s ultimate goal is to enhance the capacity of local law enforcement to utilize volunteers, and to cultivate and make the most of the deep-seated traditions of service, citizenship and responsibility in Androscoggin County.

Demands on local law enforcement increase every day. The already limited resources of the agencies are being stretched further than ever. An added benefit of VIPS is improved community relations – volunteers become law enforcement ambassadors and advocates in their community, developing a strong police-community partnership.

A few of the duties that volunteers can perform to help support the Auburn Police Department are: data entry and clerical support; greeters; technical, computer and Web support; checking on homebound and/or elderly residents; traffic control during special events and festivals (such as the Liberty Festival, the Balloon Festival and National Night Out); school crossing guides; advisers to the APD’s Law Enforcement Explorer Program; vacant house checks; vehicle lockout assistance; and mall parking lot patrols during the holiday season.

“We’re especially excited about a program we’re planning to launch this fall. We are hoping to use volunteers to assemble and distribute emergency preparedness kits for senior residents of Auburn,” said Crowell.

Anyone interested in learning more about the VIPS program can stop by the Auburn Police Department or contact Liz Allen, VIPS coordinator, at 333-6650. VIPS Volunteers are required to complete an application and are subject to a background check.