52-Year-Old Makes ‘Radical Departure’ Into Police Academy

Wilf Becker said he is not about to retire or “face the fact that the Grim Reaper is coming.” And at 52, when many men begin to reflect on their lives, Becker said he is ready for a “radical departure” from the norm.

And he took that step this week when he was inducted into the San Diego Police Academy, making him what is believed to be the second oldest rookie--the oldest was 55--ever to join the department.

Becker doesn’t view the job as the beginning of a new life, but rather as a different episode in a life that has already been filled with much satisfaction.

“Age is an attitude problem,” he said. “If you think you are 52, then you will be. Retirement is not what I need.”

After thinking for a moment, he added: “Yes, 52 is pushing it a little bit, but I’m confident I can still do it. There are other things I have up my sleeve, like experience.”

Becker said he has never let anything stand in the way of doing the things he wanted to do.

A short man with a balding pate, Becker spent the greater part of his life making and racing cars.

Born in Berlin in 1933, Becker immigrated to Canada from West Germany when he was 30. After a marriage in Canada failed, he moved to San Diego in 1968 and opened a garage on Euclid Avenue. (His only child from the marriage, an adult daughter, now lives in Spring Valley.) Becker shares a home in San Diego with a 32-year-old woman he has known for many years.

He sold his garage about five years ago and decided to join the San Diego Police Department as a reserve officer--an unpaid position. Becker said he decided to become a regular officer when he realized that as a reserve he was working 500 to 800 hours a year, plus driving back and forth to home.

“I’ve done it for 4 1/2 years for free and still enjoyed it,” Becker said. “I might as well do it full time.

Becker said his friends see him as just another member of the department.

“I see 52-year-old people, and I cannot put myself in that group,” Becker said. “Most people accept me for what I am.”

He says he lives an active life and runs to stay in shape. Becker says he can do 32 push-ups in a minute and 25 sit-ups in a minute. He worries, however, that he may have trouble with the six pull-ups required to become a full-time officer.

“I think I am probably in perfectly good shape,” he said. “I’m fortunate I am still capable of doing the job.”

Becker has twice proven that he is indeed in good condition. He passed a physical fitness test to become a reserve officer, and was required to pass another test for the academy. In both cases he proved to be in better physical condition than men half his age who failed the tests.

If a candidate can negotiate the 450-yard obstacle course required to get into the academy, officials are fairly sure that he or she is in good condition, said Lt. Jerry Sanders, the academy’s director.

The candidates who make it past the obstacle course must pass written tests, interviews and background screenings, Sanders said. In the end, only about 4% of the candidates are admitted to the academy.

Despite Becker’s age, many senior officers in the department said they could not have selected a better-qualified recruit.

In addition, he received favorable evaluations from supervisors who worked with him when he was a reserve, and some police officials suspect he will immediately become a role model for the younger officers.

Sanders, who considers Becker’s age to be an asset, said: “He makes a real good positive impression. He’s not only capable of doing the job, but he likes it. Obviously he’s not going to be around for another 20 years, but who cares. The department will get a return on the investment.”

Becker is one of 32 police recruits in the 101st San Diego Police Academy class, said Lt. Bob Slaughter, who supervises recruiting.

Slaughter said the class--17 white men, 5 white women, 3 black men, 1 black woman, 4 Latino men, 1 Latino woman and 1 Vietnamese man--has a higher percentage of minorities than most classes.

The Vietnamese, Trung Nguyen, is the first Indochinese ever to be inducted into the academy, Slaughter added.

Nguyen, 42, of El Cajon said that while he feels no pressure from being the first member of his community to join the department, he does sees himself as a pioneer and hopes fellow Vietnamese will follow his lead.

Nguyen, who served six years in the South Vietnamese army, came to the United States about 10 years with his wife and four children. Before entering the academy he worked in a book warehouse and as a community service officer for the Police Department.

Police officials asked Nguyen many months ago to join the department full time, but Nguyen seemed to have reservations, Slaughter said.

“I put a lot of thought into the job,” Nguyen said of his decision to enter the academy. “I had to prepare myself carefully. I had to decide that I could carry out the decision.”

Nguyen said he finally decided to become a policeman for the same reason he became a community service officer--the department desperately needs a link to the Vietnamese community.

Slaughter said he believes Nguyen will be an important communication link with San Diego’s Vietnamese and will encourage other Vietnamese to join the department. Many Vietnamese do not report crime because they fear government, especially the police, Slaughter said.

“They are so new in the community that they have not come to us yet,” Slaughter said. “But here is a guy (Nguyen) who is orally qualified to take on more responsibility (in the Vietnamese community). I hope he’s going to break that barrier.”

Nguyen said he has the full support of his family and is glad he joined the department. He said he first thought he was too old to become a policeman, but was pleasantly surprised when he expressed his worries to Becker.

Becker said he told Nguyen to stop worrying about his age:

“I asked him, ‘How old do you think I am? I’m more than 10 years older than you are.’ ”