 in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. These remain standing for the invocation delivered by Denver Police Chaplain, Rabbi Steve Kay. Normally I'm entitled to only one blessing, but I ask you for a moment to look to your left and look to your right. Look all around you, we are gathered together with other people without mask, and that is a blessing unto itself. So we are thankful for everyone's health and well-being and to be together in our tradition, we say how good it is to be together. Let us pray. Eternal God, we stand here as we enter a new phase as we emerge from COVID on our city, community and nation. We give thanks during this next hour as these 21 men and women who stand before us are sworn in as new officers in the ranks of our Denver Police Department. We are thankful for the Academy staff and leadership who found new and creative ways to best prepare these new officers for the highest standards of effective sound and best practices of policing. We are thankful for these 21 new officers who have learned that the best laid plans and years of Academy tradition can instantly change. Adaptability is the key skill on the street. We are thankful to these officers' families for their unconditional support during these past months while these new recruits have been at the Academy in the midst of COVID. A changing world of policing, always hoping and praying that their spouse, their partner, their son, daughter, brother, sister or other cherished family member will take the lessons learned here at our Academy and be safe on the street. We are thankful to Chief Payson and his leadership team who have needed to respond to shifting expectations of the role of a large police department. I personally pray that you new officers wear this badge with pride representing the enduring values of our city and nation. May you encounter those on the street with skills and tools that you have learned here. All of us stand here with you in pride and thanksgiving for this new stage in your life as an integral part of our Denver Police Department family. May God's presence always be with you as you come and as you go in peace. Amen. Again, on behalf of the Denver Police Department and Recruit Class 20-2, welcome. This is a long-awaited moment for our 21 new officers and we wanna thank you, the families and friends of Recruit Class 20-2 who lent your love and unfailing support throughout this rigorous process. We recognize that this was a demanding period for your daily lives and we appreciate your support. At this time, I'll invite Executive Director of Safety, Murphy Robinson. I am ecstatic to be here with you all today. This is a momentous occasion. I never thought in 2019 and before that in 2021 we would celebrate being in a room with more than five people and so that alone shows the complexity of what Class 20-2 has had to go through during their time in the academy. But on behalf of the City and County of Denver, on behalf of Mayor Michael B. Hancock and all of your public safety family, we wanna congratulate Class 20-2 and welcome you to the family of public safety. You have chosen a career path in a time where we have seen unprecedented change, not only in law enforcement but in our city and our nation as a whole and it shows the value and it shows the morals that you all have to choose this profession in this time. I will tell you this, the good ways will outweigh the bad and the challenging times will be those in which you'll look back on and be able to tell your grandchildren and their children about all the things that you dealt with when you were on patrol. I too have many stories about my patrol days. But I want you to reflect on this. You will remember this moment, the moment where you got to stand in front of your friends and family, receive that badge and understand the weight of what that badge means for you as an individual but also the weight of what that means for your representation for the City and County of Denver. I want you to know that that badge is a representation of the greatest law enforcement agency in the country. You will enjoy the police department. You will enjoy being a police officer. But I will also tell you that every call that you go to, remember this, every decision that you make affects the people that you are dealing with, affects your fellow officers, affects yourselves, affects our citizens in the community. And that effect can be a positive change for generations. And so as you go and answer the call, whether it be a ladder in the middle of the street, like it was in this morning when I had to get out of my car and move the ladder in the middle of the street, or it be a weapons call. I ask that you bring professionalism, that you bring your morals, your values to every single call, and remember that you are a reflection of the Denver Police Department, the City and County of Denver, but moreover, your families, your friends, your colleagues. And you will always be successful. I thank you for choosing the Denver Police Department as much as we chose you, and we are looking forward to a long and prosperous career in the family of public safety. God bless and watch your six. Thank you, Director Robinson. And now Chief Payson would like to share his words of encouragement with the graduating recruits. Well, what I can tell you that is encouraging for all of us is the sight that I see from this stage, all of us together, what a great day today is. And we haven't had too many good days in the last 14, 15 months. I consider today an absolute great day. I also remember the day that we met some six months ago and talked about the challenges that you are going to face in the academy, as well as the challenges that we are facing in our community. And these are unprecedented times with these types of challenges. What is remarkable to me is that each one of you were willing to raise your hand and do this job, to join the current police officers and civilian staff in doing this very difficult work. It is a reflection on the character, on the heart, on the makeup of each one of you. It is also a reflection on the families, the friends that helped shape and mold these 21 police officers. Now it's been tough, not everybody is here that on that first day when we got to talk and field training or PTO is not any easier. It's very difficult to do this job. So although we celebrate this great day for each of you, there's a lot of hard work ahead and I encourage you to do everything possible in order to graduate the PTO program because as difficult as this job is, as challenging as this job is, as much scrutiny as our department has faced and will continue to face, it is just as rewarding and more. When you get to impact somebody's life in a positive way, whether it be a young person, a family or an entire neighborhood, that is your reward. So I would like to thank each of you for continuing to stick with it. It's going to be tough, but it's all gonna be worth it. I wanna acknowledge and thank our DPD team, both sworn and civilian for still being here to do this difficult work. And I wanna thank the Academy staff for shaping these officers, preparing them for this ever-changing world and making sure that they have all the tools necessary, all of the skills necessary to serve our community. So remember, as you walk out these doors, work hard and treat people right. All people. And let's make Denver the safest, most equitable city in America. Thank you. Thank you, Chief Pazin. We have several awards for Outstanding Achievement to present today. And Director of Training Lieutenant, Kim Bowser and Class Supervisor, Sergeant Noel Akita will present the awards now. Good morning. Thank you all for being here today to share in this extremely special day. My name is Kimberly Bowser and I am the Director of Training here at the Denver Police Academy. I had the honor of Class 20-2 being my first recruit class while here at the Academy. What was once 24 individuals is now, back on November 30th, is now one group, one cohesive team. Throughout their time here at the Academy, I've seen these recruits laugh, I've seen them cry, and I've seen them build each other up when they needed it most. There's been hard work, frustration, relief, joy and sweat. There was lots of sweat. Before we get to presenting the awards to some of our top recruits, I'd like to let me introduce the recruit class Sergeant Noel Akita. Good morning. My name is Sergeant Noel Akita. I am the recruit training Sergeant here at the Academy. First of all, congratulations Class 20-2 for graduating the Police Academy. But before we begin the presentations of the awards, I want to thank all of the family and friends that sacrifice all of their time to help all these recruits at the Academy succeed. I also wanna thank the Academy staff who's done a tremendous job to make sure that this Academy was successful even under the COVID-19 pandemic. I want to begin by talking about some good things that Class 20-2 did as far as for the community. From day one, we teach community service and teamwork. Every year we're invited to fundraise for the Special Olympics. Last year, we raised over $28,000 from a recruit class of 50. This year, Class 20-2 was invited to participate in the 5K Polar Plunge under COVID restrictions and raised over $20,000 with a recruit class of 21. On top of it all, this recruit class also raised an additional $1,000 for the Denver Police Foundation. This class did an amazing job. I watched 20-2 grow from day one and I watched each of them help each other through teamwork. When someone was struggling, they banded together and helped. I see a bright future for the Denver Police Department. I am proud to be your Sergeant, Class 20-2. You are now my colleagues, my brothers and sisters, my family. Congratulations again. Now to the awards. I would like to first introduce to you Assistant Denver District Attorney, Zach McCabe to the podium. My name is Zach McCabe, and I'm the Assistant District Attorney in the Denver DA's office. I'm here today on behalf of Beth McCann, the elected DA, who can't be here because she's trying a case. I know she would like to be here herself in person. I would like to say personally, thanks to each and every one of you in this recruit class for making a commitment to serve the people of the city and county of Denver. I wanna thank you individually as well, both as a District Attorney and as a citizen of this community. I trust that you will all take your commitment seriously and be a guardian for the community that we all know and love. Thank you very much. Some of you may know, but some of you may not know, how much work these cadets are put through, what they have to do to earn the badge that's gonna be placed on their chest in just a little bit. Besides all of the physical training, driving, arrest and control, they have to become quasi-lawyers. And that's where our office gets to step in and we have the honor and privilege to assist all of you to learn the law of the state of Colorado. For that, I would like to thank the deputies in my office who have committed a lot of time to give you what I hope were good presentations. And also our Chief Deputy District Attorney Victoria Sharp, whom I'm sure you all know quite well, who spent a lot of time with you guys to make sure that you know the law, which you're gonna be asked to go out now and apply. However, there was one recruit who had the best grade for the class. So it's my pleasure today to award the recruit the recruit who had the number one rank for legal education. And that recruit is Stephanie Reyes. Congratulations. Now we would like to present the DPD Academy Awards. The first award is the Academic Award. This award goes to the recruit who scored the highest on both major exams and quizzes. For class 20-2, the Academic Award goes to Officer Whitney Rohrbach. Congratulations. The second award is the Overall Skills Award. This award goes to the recruit who demonstrated top performance in the areas of arrest control, driving, scenarios, and firearms. For class 20-2, the Overall Skills Award goes to Officer Matthew Keeling. Congratulations. The third and final award is the Most Inspirational Recruit Award. This is a special award because it is voted upon by the class. The awardee is a person who motivates others emotionally, physically, and mentally. Inspires others to do their best and goes above and beyond to help each other, especially when they're struggling. Class 20-2 has voted the Most Inspirational Recruit Award to go to Officer Jordy Aranda. Congratulations. Class 20-2 has also chosen a spokesperson to speak on their behalf. Officer Barrett Packard, please come up. Good morning, Executive Director of Safety Robinson, Chief Payson, members of the Denver Police Department and distinguished guests. My name is Barrett Packard and on behalf of Recruit Class 20-2, I wanna thank you all for being here today. I'm sure that everyone in this room can attest to the challenges the past year has thrown at all of us. The 21 recruits here today interviewed and anxiously awaited good news last April as the original May 11th Academy start date quickly approached. The world was rapidly shutting down and uncertainty arose about our futures with the Denver Police Department. We watched idly by as city and department leadership had to make difficult and sound decisions to keep the citizens of Denver safe, healthy, and financially cared for. We watched as thousands across the country called for change within our profession and we waited for that coveted email from the Civil Service Commission with an offer letter. 2020 pushed many officers to retire early for applicants to withdraw from hiring processes across the country and for many to question if this was the career for them. Nearly every outside instructor we had this year would tell us, you all are crazy for stepping into this career in 2020 but we thank you and respect you for doing so. This got me thinking about why I personally wanted to become a Denver police officer. The answer I came up with was simply this, if not me, who? I can confidently say that every recruit in class 20-2 shares the same sentiment, it would not change their careers for the world. We have been trained well and are ready for the unknowns that await us in just a few short days. Lieutenant Bowser, Sergeant Akita, and the entire Academy staff have put their heart and soul into preparing us and laying the foundations for which we will all build our careers upon. We have been prepared physically, mentally, and emotionally for the adversity we will inevitably face as a police officer. We are confident in the training we have received and we'll use it to be the officers that are to the department and more importantly, our city has called for and expects. I want to take a minute to thank everyone who made it possible for the 21 of us to be here today. To Chief Payson, the department command staff, your hard work and ability to make sound decisions allowed this Academy to happen and we thank you. To Lieutenant Bowser, Sergeant Akita, and the Academy staff, the hours of planning, mentoring, and teaching allowed us to safely meet in person and gain the vital knowledge we need to be the best police officers we can be. You taught us to pay attention to detail, respect others, utilize our strengths, and so much more. Thank you. Last, but certainly not least, our family and friends. You all stuck by our sides as we made our way through the Academy. Long days and even longer nights of studying took its toll on us, but you supported and loved us through it. I'm sure many of you know the Denver Revised Municipal Code as well as some of us here, and in an unlucky few, we're put in a control hold of time or two. Thank you for your love, for your patience, and for your support. To close, I want to say a few words to my classmates. We walk through these doors as strangers, and we'll walk out of them as family. We created a bond that can only be forced through blood, sweat, and tears as we work towards a common goal. We have bled together, we've cried together, we've laughed together, and we've even passed out together. We are ready for what lies ahead, and every single one of you will change lives. So go forward boldly and humbly. I want to leave you with the words of Tecumseh that says, so live your life that the fear of death may never enter your heart. Trouble no one about the religion. Respect others in their view and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Thank you all. Now, with the assistance of Executive Director and Deputy Mayor Robinson and Chief Payson, we will begin our graduation certificate presentation. Whitney N. Roarbaugh, Matthew J. Keeling, Isabella R. Abeda, Savannah M. Jarrais, Shahida, Matthew M. Lamir, Henry Garcia, and R. Martinez, Jordi I. Aranda, Kimberly G. Fuentes Sanchez, Stephanie J. Reyes, Catherine M. Roberts, Santos Reyes, Anthony Iglesias, David A. Botreven, E. Wharton, Marissa T. Henry, Christopher R. Moroni, Sylvester O. Morenya, Nan Kim T. Nguyen. Now I invite the Honorable Judge Lombardi to administer the Oath of Office. If you could raise your right hand and repeat after me. I, state your name, do solemnly swear by the ever-living God that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the State of Colorado and the charter and ordinances of the city and county of Denver and that I will faithfully perform the duties of the office of the officer, police officer of the city and county of Denver to which I have been appointed and upon which I am about to enter. Congratulations. Sergeant Nikita. Holy one of blessing. The smiles and the thumbs up that we have seen over the past hour fill our hearts and our souls with pride and joy. A new chapter begins of these 21 new sworn officers. We ask that they continue to heed the wisdom of their FTOs and others as they prepare for their first shift. May the brightness of their badge remind them even in the hard days ahead and guide them to make wise decisions, listen with respect and always be safe on the street. We also ask for your blessing for all who had gathered here today, for those who dwell in the city and county of Denver and for those men and women in uniform who serve our armed services, protecting the values of our great nation, the United States of America. May we stand as a united nation, living our lives by the values that our flag represents. God bless all of you and God bless all of us and may God bless America. Amen.