The Marana Volunteers in Police Service are looking for a few good men - and women.
Quite a few members of the volunteer group are winter visitors who are getting ready to head to cooler climates.
The group held its first recruitment event March 16 at the monthly meeting of the Dove Mountain Civic Group.
The volunteers help local police by performing basic services so the police can do things that only police are allowed to do. The VIPS, as they're known, are part of a national organization.
VIPS wear special uniforms and drive in marked VIPS cars that look similar to police cars. They help with traffic control, do fingerprinting and vehicle identification number etching, offer police administrative support such as handling records and help at special events.
Volunteers must attend training and commit to helping at least eight hours per month while living in Marana.
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It's that last part that presents a problem for the group - many VIPS don't live year-round in Marana, and when they leave in the summer, the program could still use their help.
That's why they've started organized recruiting efforts, said John Lutzel, a retiree who has volunteered with the local group since it formed in 2004.
Volunteers also use community outreach events such as VIN etching or Dispose-a-Med to tell people about VIPS and its need for more members, he said.
"It's a great organization," Lutzel said. "It was an opportunity for me to give back to the community."
He's enjoyed watching the group expand from working only in the Dove Mountain area to covering all of Marana, he said.
Recently, he got called out in the middle of the night to help at a traffic accident. It was gratifying to be able to direct traffic and free up officers so they could help the crash victims, he said.
Retired police officer and current VIPS volunteer Bob Bereiter told the Dove Mountain group that a big reason people should want volunteers in their neighborhoods is to reduce crime and fear - and increase people's perception of their safety and security.
And it helps property values, he said.
"A safe community is a valuable community," he said.
Contact reporter Shelley Shelton at sshelton@azstarnet.com or 807-8464.
