Lewes police officer earns community relations award
Lewes police officer Rob Scisco has a knack for community policing.
It showed when a video surfaced of Scisco struggling to operate a hoverboard, much to the amusement of children at Jefferson Apartments in Lewes. Scisco had once before tried the popular toy with the kids with some success.
“A couple of the kids were asking about me,” Scisco said. “I was requested to go over and try the hoverboard again. You can see in the video it took me a couple of tries. Even when I got it, I was a little wobbly at first, but then I got the hang of it.”
Scisco’s actions, which earned the first ever community involvement award, were the embodiment of new Lewes Police Chief Tom Spell’s push for more community engagement.
“He took the bull by the horns,” Spell said. “He took it upon himself to get out of his car, be on foot and … he made a great connection with the kids. They got to see a cop in a different light, and that’s important, especially in today’s world.”
Building positive relationships with the community is very important, Spell said. He encourages his officers to meet with downtown business owners, go into schools and interact with as many members of the community as possible.
As part of ongoing community policing efforts, Scisco also goes to Shields Elementary School during lunch and chats with students.
“These kids are exposed to news outlets all the time, so they see headlines about cops doing not necessarily great things,” he said. “It’s nice for them to have another view of what cops do on a regular basis.”
This was the first time the Lewes Police Department recognized one of its own officers for community relations. It is expected to be an annual award.
“Everyone pulls their weight and goes above and beyond in the community policing aspect,” Scisco said. “It was nice to be recognized for it.”
Scisco is originally from New Jersey. He worked as a seasonal officer in Spring Lake, N.J., before moving up the ranks to become a part-time dispatcher and part-time certified officer. He then moved on to the Deal Police Department, also in Monmouth County, N.J., where he worked as a full-time dispatcher and part-time certified officer. He moved to the Cape Region with his wife three-and-a-half years ago to become a Lewes officer.
Nick Roth is the news editor. He has been with the Cape Gazette since 2012, previously covering town beats in Milton and Lewes. In addition to serving on the editorial board and handling page layout, Nick is responsible for the weekly Delaware History in Photographs feature and enjoys writing stories about the Cape Region’s history. Prior to the Cape Gazette, Nick worked for the Delmarva Media Group, including the Delaware Wave, Delaware Coast Press and Salisbury Daily Times. He also contributed to The News Journal. Originally from Boyertown, Pa., Nick attended Shippensburg University in central Pennsylvania, graduating in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. He’s won several MDDC awards during his career for both writing and photography. In his free time, he enjoys golfing, going to the beach with his family and cheering for Philadelphia sports teams.
