LAKE FOREST
The Sheriff’s Team of Active Retired Seniors celebrated the end of its first year assisting Orange County Sheriff’s Department deputies and city staff Wednesday.
The 18-member volunteer team uses a van emblazoned with the word “Sheriffs” to patrol the streets of Lake Forest and report vandalism, damaged sidewalks, abandoned shopping carts and suspicious people in public areas.
The team also checks up on elderly shut-in or disabled residents, organizes a business watch program and staffs the city’s community policing center in Saddleback Plaza on El Toro Road.
The team was praised for its efforts Wednesday with a gourmet dinner, Christmas carolers and speeches from Sheriff Mike Carona and other county and city officials.
The team’s 4,870 hours of volunteer service represented almost $70,000 in savings to the city, Mayor Peter Herzog said.
Volunteer Joseph Barney, who donated 585 hours to the program during the last year, received the 1999 Volunteer Award from Lt. Mike James of the Lake Forest sheriff’s substation.
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