Coming to a station near you

Tom Graham wanted to be a police officer when he was 20.

But height and weight requirements 45 years ago kept the small-framed Graham from entering the profession.

Now at 66, the Costa Mesa resident works in the fingerprint department at the Costa Mesa Police Department. He is one of 25 volunteers — most of them senior citizens.

“I’m retired and I’m a wannabe cop. This is as close as I’ll get to be a cop,” said Graham, a volunteer for six years. “It’s a fulfilling thing for me. It’s better than sitting at home and watching TV.”

Graham retired 10 years ago from the ice-delivery business.

Volunteers like him assist the Police Department in filing paper work, processing crime scene investigation prints, distributing fliers about lost children, patrolling the streets and other tasks.

Sue Hupp, crime prevention specialist, said the volunteer program started in 1988. People interested in becoming a volunteer must go through a police citizens academy first.

“The Police Department relies heavily on the work the volunteers do,” said Hupp, who has been with the department for 21 years. “Because of this, it gives the [police officers] more time to really focus on what needs to get done, leaving the peripheral work to be done by the volunteers.”

Mickey Dunlap, a volunteer for eight years, said he and other volunteers also serve as “an extra pair of eyes and ears” for police.

“If a citizen flags us down, and something doesn’t seem right, our job is to contact police,” said Dunlap, who is part of the program’s Citizens on Patrol.

Dunlap, a Newport Beach resident, thinks once people retire they should volunteer for a worthwhile cause.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for someone to give back to the community and do something meaningful with their lives,” Dunlap said, who retired nine years ago from a job as a professional photographer.

He volunteered for the Costa Mesa Police because his city’s program didn’t have hours that suited his schedule.

He is one of six volunteers who are part of the Citizens on Patrol. Their work involves directing traffic at fire or accident scenes, as well as giving parking citations.

Bobbie Hedrick, who also works on patrol, began volunteering with her husband, Bruce, eight years ago. Her husband died in 2004.

“Since my husband passed, this is my second family,” Hedrick, 76, said.

She was a clerk typist for 24 years at Killybrooke Elementary School in Costa Mesa before she retired in 1993. Hedrick said she decided to volunteer because she “got tired of sitting at home.”

“I just like to help my community,” Hedrick said. “I’m a people person.”

A typical volunteer day for Hedrick involves filing reports.

“I love what I’m doing,” she said. “I look forward to coming in every day.”

Jeanne Moody, another senior citizen volunteer, also loves her work. This is her first year volunteering. Like Graham, she does fingerprinting.

“In the old days officers did the fingerprints. Now we help, and it makes their job easier,” said Moody, who retired 10 years ago from Transamerica, where she worked as an insurance underwriter and analyst.

The volunteers “are a good group to work with, and I believe the work we do helps police and the city,” she said.