Post 452 raised money for device through multiple events
The Harrison Township Police Department has a new tool for its tool box thanks to American Legion Post 452 in Mullica Hill.
Through multiple fundraising events, including the monthly guest bartender night at the Legion, Post 452 purchased a LTO-Tracker for the police department.
The device is a thermal imaging monocular that is able to detect a deer-sized lifeform from 600 yards away. The device detects the heat signature from a distance and highlights the form for the viewer. This tracker is 5.6 inches in length and weighs 10 ounces and cost approximately $600.
While this product is marketed as a hunting device, it has the potential to assist Harrison Township police in instances such as searching for a person in poor lighting and even searching for a person at times of inclement weather.
The idea to purchase this device stems from an incident earlier in the year after Pat Shields, Post 452 adjutant, called the police about a loud noise coming from the woods near his home in the early morning hours.
In conversation with Dennis Clowney, Post 452 commander, the two men brainstormed ways in which to assist the police with future instances.
“It’s just amazing that they saw something we didn’t have and they took the time to get their members together and donate it to us. Now we can add it to our tool belt,” Adam McEvoy, Harrison Township detective said.
McEvoy stated the device was put into use fewer than 12 hours after the Legion presented it to the department on March 5.
The detective mentioned the device is ideal for poor lighting conditions and can possibly assist law enforcement detect a person who does not want to be found.
Officers will carry this device with them during patrols.
“It may not show us an exact image, but it will point us in the right direction,” he said.
Mullica Hill American Legion Post 452 has a history of fundraising, including donating to the Gloucester County Advisory Council, local sports teams, animal shelters and even individuals.
“I’m glad that we can give back. For a time, we were the ones asking for help. Now we are trying to help out others because if it wasn’t for the support of the community, we wouldn’t be here right now,” Clowney said.
Post 452 is looking forward to its annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., March 16 at Post 452, and the first annual “Concert for Kyle” heart festival, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., April 28 on the back lawn of Post 452. The proceeds from the concert will offset medical expenses for Kyle Allen, a Mullica Hill resident and 2012 Clearview Regional High School graduate who recently received a new heart after a sudden congestive heart failure diagnosis.
