Claflin police chief: From The Bronx to the ‘Burg

                                                          Claflin Police Chief Melvin Williams.

Sporting his sash and a shining badge, a young boy takes great pride in monitoring the halls of his Bronx elementary school -- a responsibility that would lead to a career over 44 years long. 

Chief Melvin Williams has served with Claflin's public safety department for almost nine years, long after his retirement from law enforcement. He found his calling in the fourth grade. 

“Back then, they had the hall monitors, you know, so we wore a little sash and had a little badge that we put on and I just thought that was the coolest thing,” Williams said. “And then watching the police officers up in New York in fourth grade, I said, this is what I want to do.” 

However, Williams’ journey did not start on the busy streets of New York. He was born in Anderson, South Carolina, and raised by his sharecropper grandparents. 

His grandmother delivered him in the very home where he spent eight years of his life. Williams started school a year late, having no birth certificate and no shoes. 

At 8 years old, he moved to New York with his mother, who was in search of a better life. He spent the rest of his adolescence there. 

“I lived in New York in the South Bronx, that's where I went to school, that's where I graduated from high school,” Williams said. “And the interesting part of living in New York was, again, it was in the ghetto.” 

Williams got married to his wife straight out of high school and, by her request, did not pursue his career in law enforcement. Instead, he fell into careers less dangerous than policing in New York.  

One of the jobs led him to Miami and right into a Florida police academy. Turning on his radio one day, he learned that the Orlando police department was recruiting officers.  

“I went, took the test, passed it, went the next day, took the physical test, passed it,” Williams said. “And long story made short, in March of 1980, I started the police academy and graduated the academy in June of ‘80.  

“And it has been one of the best things that ever happened to me.” 

Williams said he retired three times but has found his passion again in campus public safety. At 68 years old, he said he has a new love for the job that has been part of his life for over 44 years. 

“I still enjoy being a police officer as much today as I did in 1980 when I crossed that stage,” Williams said. “As a matter of fact, I think I enjoy it more now because what I'm doing is a little different.”  

Williams said his public safety department at Claflin has increased from eight to 10 police officers to work alongside the eight security officers, and has employed a victim's advocate, Tiffany Ham. He said he is working on getting more improvements for the department.  

“We're doing miracles, if you will, with what we got,” Williams said. “We're being as proactive as we possibly can.”