Kāpiti Community Patrol seeks volunteers

Riaan de Bruyn, left, Alex Grinsberg and Peter Pain with the dedicated Kāpiti Community Patrol vehicle.

With just 20 volunteers Kāpiti Community Patrol provides and extra set of eyes and ears for the police.

Working independently from the police, Community Patrols of New Zealand (CPNZ) is a national organisation that was formed in 2002.

There are now more than 170 affiliated Community Patrols in New Zealand with the Kāpiti Community Patrol formed in 2004 covering the area between Paekākāriki and Otaihanga.

Patrols are done in a dedicated patrol vehicle and usually take place one weekday afternoon, and Friday and Saturday nights.

The patrol currently has around 20 volunteer patrollers, of all ages and stages of life.

Alex Grinberg is one of the newest recruits at Kāpiti Community Patrol.

He is a lecturer and researcher at Massey University by day, but for several hours each month he donates his time to keeping his community safe as a volunteer patroller.

Alex has been with the patrol for eight months and joined up to serve his community and to meet like-minded people.

"Getting to see the streets of Kāpiti from a different angle is one of my favourite parts of the 'job'," Alex said.

"As well as the weekly patrols, we also provide support at local events such as the Coastlands 50th Anniversary celebrations and the more recent outdoor cinema event at Waikanae Park."

While operating as an independent organisation, Kāpiti Community Patrol works closely with the Kāpiti Police Station which provides guidance and training.

A dedicated police liaison officer provides information on a weekly basis to help with planning of the patrols.

Former chairman of the patrol committee Peter Bain has been with the patrol for eight years.

Peter has now handed over the reins to Riaan de Bruyn to allow himself time to concentrate on other projects but remains a volunteer patroller.

Riaan has been with the patrol for two years, joining because he wanted to make a difference by helping to keep his community as safe a place as possible.

"The main purpose of a community patrol is as an extra set of eyes and ears for the Police," Riaan said. "Peter has done a brilliant job leading the patrol over the last three years and on behalf of all our volunteers, I'd like say a big thank you."

Kāpiti Community Patrol is looking to expand and is actively recruiting new volunteer patrollers.

The minimum commitment is one patrol a month which usually takes four hours on a weekday afternoon, or a Friday or Saturday night.

Each patrol is always undertaken by at least two patrollers with training and an induction provided.

If you would like more information about joining Kāpiti Community Patrol, or would like to make a donation or discuss sponsorship of the patrol, contact Riaan on 027 290 3048 or email commpatkapiti@gmail.com.