Twenty-three-year-old Alexander Testani is keeping up a family tradition.
The Trumbull resident was sworn in as the newest officer in the Greenwich Police Department in a Greenwich Town Hall ceremony Monday afternoon, following a municipal legacy serving Greenwich begun nearly 30 years ago by his mother Suzanne, who is the program coordinator at the Greenwich Senior Center.
"There is a deep connection here ... your family has been an integral part of the Town of Greenwich for nearly three decades," said First Selectman Peter Tesei, who also serves as Greenwich's Police Commissioner.
Before the ceremony, Suzanne Testani choked back tears as she said, "I was 23 when I came to work for the town and Alex is 23, coming to work for the town." Alex also is the son of Jack Testani, who is chairman of the Trumbull Republican Town Committee and the Police Commission.
Alex Testani, a graduate of Sacred Heart University where he earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice. He also has customer service experience having worked as a sales advisor for Edge Fitness, AFB Construction Management, the Trumbull Board of Education and the Tashua Knolls Golf Course. That customer service experience will do Testani well, said Police Chief James Heavey. "We are very customer service oriented," Heavey said.
In addition to several friends and relatives attending the swearing in, Heavey also noted Trumbull Police Chief Tom Kiely was in the audience. "We try not to steal too many officers from Trumbull," Heavey said. Kiely quipped, "That's getting to be a problem." The pair joked that Kiely might need a restraining order to keep Mark Marino, Greenwich's deputy police chief who lives in Trumbull, from stopping by to chat with Trumbull officers.
The new recruit, who received badge 106, will begin nine months training at the Connecticut Police Academy in Meriden next week. His 18-month probationary period also will include 12 weeks of departmental training in before he's allowed to patrol solo.
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