Township Police Department Adds New Member to Force

The Upper Southampton Police Department recently hired a new officer to the squad.

Frank Fazzio, 25, jump-started his new position on the Fourth of July, in time for the town’s holiday festivities.

“They have a Fourth of July parade and fireworks,” he said. “They wanted me to start that day because they need all the help they can get.”

He was sworn in on June 29 and is currently undergoing training. Fazzio previously held two part-time police officer positions in Delaware County, so he is not the average rookie to the police force.

“A lot of it is stuff I have done before,” he said. “But… every police department has their own thing that they do. We might use the same computer system but they use it differently.”

He grew up in Ridley Park, Delaware County. He attended Penn State Brandywine, where he received his Bachelor’s in communications. After he graduated he went on to the Delaware County Police Academy. In July 2010, he began a part-time position at the Parkside Borough Police Department. Eventually, he would take on a second part-time police officer position in Darby Borough, also in Delaware County.

He took the Bucks County Consortium police officer test in the fall of 2010. The results of this test go into a master list where the county police departments can choose possible candidates.

“The thing with those things is, you take them and a lot of the time you don’t hear anything,” Fazzio said. “Police departments might not even be hiring. It all depends on if they’re hiring, if they’re going to choose from the test or not.”

The test seemed a bit daunting at first. Fazzio said that seeing a crowd of about 300 to 350 aspiring police officers almost made him turn around.

“It was overwhelming. I’m like, ‘I’m not going to get hired,’ ” he said. “But I did it anyway and I guess I did pretty well. Upper Southampton called me for an interview and now I’m working here.”

The transition from his Delaware County precincts to Upper Southampton has been relatively smooth. The main challenge he faces is the geological differences. According to Fazzio, the boroughs of Parkside and Darby were much smaller than Southampton.

“If you drove the entire town, the whole border, it wasn’t even a mile,” he said. “Here, if you drive the entire border, it’s 10 miles. There are a lot of streets that you have to learn.”

Fazzio has always wanted to be a police officer. Penn State Brandywine did not offer a criminal justice major, but he chose to study communications because he felt that would still benefit him in his career. He has seen how his public relations and writing coursework have helped him in policing, such as in his daily reports.

“I figure at least communications would help,” he said. “I would learn how to speak to the people.”

The possibility that anything can happen keeps Fazzio excited and ready to go. Making a difference and helping people in need drive him to do his job and “do it right.”

“Every little aspect gets me excited about the job,” he said. “The fact that it could be completely quiet one minute and the next your heart is racing because you’re going to something like a high priority call. The unknown part of the job is the best part about it. Everyday is different.”

He has enjoyed his first month on the job and looks forward to what is to come.

“It’s fun. It’s a great job,” Fazzio said. “I’m glad I’m out here.”

He has a starting salary of $45,962 per year.