Benjamin Jimenez, of Chicago Heights, said he used to be something of a wayward youth, though he hadn’t gotten into trouble yet.
“I was a lot less respectable … and a little mean,” said Jimenez. “I was this high school angsty young man.”
But Jimenez, a recent graduate of Bloom High School in Chicago Heights, has gotten his act together. He’s the commander of Law Enforcement Explorer Post #102, based in that city, after being a member for three years. Now he helps 21 other 14- to 21-year-olds find the right path.
Jimenez was very shy when he first signed up but now enjoys addressing crowds, including his fellow Explorers and the veterans groups they work with each Veterans Day.
“I speak, I raise morale a little bit,” said Jimenez. “I feel like a new man.”
Like many of his colleagues, Jimenez is now thinking of becoming a police officer. He’s enrolled in an associates degree in Criminal Justice program at Prairie State College in Chicago Heights, where speaking up can be part of the job.
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“Law enforcement is no easy thing,” said Jimenez. “Sometimes you have to yell.”
He and his fellow Explorers helped out with crowd control at the recent Fiesta Chicago Heights event. Elisa Serrato, an administrative assistant with the Chicago Heights Police Department and Law Enforcement Explorer advisor, also was on hand. The lessons the Explorers are learning through the program are paying off.
The Chicago Heights post earned a first place award last month in beginner de-escalation at the Illinois Law Enforcement Youth Association state competition at Western Illinois University. They’ve also practiced building searches and rapid response at a local middle school.
Officer Philip Espinoza, who supervises the explorers, came up with the idea of expanding it after being an Explorer himself as a teen in Berwyn. He was a police officer there for 15 years and has been with the Chicago Heights department since 2017. His own upbringing played a part. He grew up in Chicago, moving to Cicero at age 12 and then Berwyn.
“I saw a lot of gang violence and saw how police handled things,” said Espinoza. “I wanted to be part of the solution, not the problem.”
The Explorer program motivated him to become a police officer, despite the dangers of the job. Espinoza said his dad, who was a factory worker, was hard-working, brave about taking risks, and always positive. He taught his son to be the same.
“I felt anything you do in life has some type of risk or danger, and in this role that risk was okay to take,” he said.
Since starting the Chicago Heights post, three members have become police officers, and four joined the military.
Brett Espinoza, his son, has come on board, too, and was one of the Explorers working at Fiesta Chicago Heights.
Brett Espinoza joined because “It looked interesting to me. I’m thinking about becoming a cop.”
Arturo Robles, who became the city’s police chief in April after being an officer there for 27 years, is a big supporter of the program, too. He was an Explorer back in 1985.
“I was hooked ever since,” said Robles. “Our goal is to reach out to the kids in the community. Hopefully they want to continue in law enforcement.
Janireah Williams-Hale, of Glenwood, another Explorer and a senior at nearby Bloom High School, said she, too, was shy before joining.
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“It’s really made me into a better leader,” said Williams-Hale, adding it was like a second family under Espinoza. “It lets me know I have a voice and no one’s judging me.”
She’s moved up in the group from cadet, to sergeant, too, while also being an active member of her school’s JROTC, Drama Club and National Honor Society.
Fellow Bloom student Maria Roa, 17, of Chicago Heights, has been an Explorer for three years.
“I see a lot of news broadcasts where police are represented as aggressive and racist,” she said. “I want to change that.”
Janice Neumann is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.