Ask the Chief

Who is the single most important person in deciding the future of our community?

Is it the schools? Is it local government?

Is it the police department?

Is it the church?

While all of these groups play a vital role in our daily lives they are not the most important nor influential. That privilege and responsibility rest with parents. Parents are responsible for laying the foundation for their children whereby their values, morals, personality, beliefs, ethics and much more are set and built upon.

It doesn’t take a village to raise a child.

It takes a caring and responsible parent. Schools, government and churches represent a support system that parents can use to ensure that their child’s future is built properly but the foundation is the sole responsibility of parents.

It’s the parent’s responsibility to teach right and wrong.

It is the parent’s responsibility to teach honesty and integrity. It is the parent’s responsibility to teach citizenship and respect for others. After 20 years of law enforcement, I have seen a direct correlation between a child’s behavior and the quality of parenting that a child was provided.

There is now a push in our country to start holding parents responsible for the criminal behavior of their children. Those in support of this argue that a child is a bully, a thief, a fighter.... Due to a lack of proper parenting.

Yes, there are some children who in spite of proper parenting make a deliberate and conscious choice to do wrong, but the vast majority either mimic a behavior they have seen in their parents or are left to make life impacting decisions either influenced by peers or alone with their very limited experience and maturity.

Being a parent is not easy. It’s a lifelong commitment filled with challenges and opportunities.

If you want your child to be a successful upstanding community member then you need to give them the training and education needed to reach that goal. If you don’t, a time may come when you will be held responsible for their behavior.