I write this column still enjoying the Patriots unrivaled Super Bowl comeback win!
In the fews days that have passed since the Patriots 5th Superbowl title, I’ve also hit upon a distinct analogy between that team (the Patriots) and this one (the Barnstable County Sheriff’s Office).
I’ll start with the most successful trio in NFL history: Patriot owner Bob Kraft, head coach Bill Belichick, and quarterback Tom Brady. It is now beyond dispute that these three gentlemen are the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time).
While I share the accolades for these high-profiled team leaders, I also feel that a little too much credit lands at the top when things are going well. Just as Brady’s less heralded teammates deserve better, so it is around here at the Sheriff’s Office.
I’ll start with wide receiver Danny Amendola. Let’s be honest, other than a game here and a game there, Amendola has not become the Wes Welker replacement the Patriots had hoped for when they signed him. But he starred when he needed to on the biggest stage, snagging eight catches for 78 yards, and a touchdown. He’s like the front office staff around here, doing their job every day, loyal and dependable when needed the most.
Fellow wide receiver Julian Edelman is equally reliable. We will remember for years the images on the television as we attempted to figure out if our eyes were playing tricks on us. Did he really catch that pass? Let’s compare Edelman to our emergency 911 dispatchers. They never drop the ball and from time to time even make the “big play”by performing life-saving instructions to callers in distress.
There is little doubt that the Patriots would not have won the Superbowl without running back James White. White “did his job” each and every week during the regular season, though mostly going unnoticed. On Superbowl Sunday he came up big with three touchdowns when his team needed him the most. Our Corrections Officers are just like James White. They are quietly “behind the wall,” each and every day, keeping everyone safe. When their “team” needs them, they’re always there.
Thinking of teamwork, we need to cite the one-two punch of linebacker Dont’a Hightower and defensive tackle Alan Branch. Hightower’s hit on Falcon quarterback Matt Ryan caused THE fumble, Branch recovered THE fumble, and the offense hit pay dirt minutes later for one of those consecutive touchdown/two point conversion parlays. Not unlike the way our Correctional Officers, Radio Techs, Crime Scene Investigators, Telecommincators, K-9 Officers and so on exemplify a high-level of training and professionalism, whether are working by themselves or in a group environment.
I also have a tremendous cadre of jail supervisors who along with maintenance workers, nurses, teachers, counsellors, re-entry specialists, and volunteers make our facility and its satellite operations the best in the business! Everyone is a member of the Sheriff’s Office “team,” and without their daily hard work and dedication things would not run as smoothly and efficiently as they do.
Where would Kraft, Belichick, and Brady be without these guys? Where would I be without contributions from the kind of employees mentioned here? Answer: Nowhere near the top, a fact I not only acknowledge but celebrate.
Until next time . . .
by Sheriff James Cummings
