Wilson Middle School Liaison Police Officer Named Local Hero

December 9, 2004

Plano Police Department veteran and Wilson Middle Police Liaison Art Parker received the Community Credit Union/KSCS Salute a Local Hero Award Thursday, Dec. 2 at Community Credit Union, 1201 W. 15th Street in Plano.

Officer Parker is a 19-year veteran of the Plano Police Department. During his 17 years as a police liaison in the Plano Independent School District, he has developed a reputation of being a compassionate, caring role model to students throughout the dis-trict.

He starts each school year by memorizing the names of each and every student at the school where he is assigned. He can even tell you what page of the yearbook a stu-dent ’s photo appears!

Officer Parker often speaks on the topic of sexual abuse and discloses his own history of abuse. This often leads students who have suffered abuse themselves to move past the feeling of shame and come forward to report it. In addition to his work at Wilson,
Officer Parker also teaches and makes presentations at several elementary schools in the PISD.

Prior to joining the Plano Police Department, Officer Parker was a military police officer in the United States Army. While serving in Germany, he founded a mentorship program based on the Big Brothers, Big Sisters model.

"Officer Art Parker goes above and beyond the call of duty when it comes to protecting students in the Plano Independent School District. Students look at him and see not only a protector, but also a mentor and a true friend. For that reason, we consider Officer
Parker to be a true hero,” said Gary Base, Community Credit Union President and CEO.

Wilson parent, Kathy Ortiz, nominated Parker for the award when she visited the Community Credit Union website. “I am not only a parent, but I am also a child psychiatrist, and I feel that Officer Parker does a wonderful job connecting to the students and provides an invaluable service to the community,” she wrote in the nomination.

Community Credit Union, along with radio station KSCS created the Salute a Local Hero Award so that residents of the Dallas/Fort Worth area could brag about their neighbors who devote themselves to a cause that makes their community a better place to live.

Nominations are still being accepted for future awards online at www.communitycu.org and www.kscs.com.