Monongahela Woman’s Club donates to police vest fund

For the MVI

The Monongahela Woman’s Club donated $500 to the City of Monongahela’s Police Vest Fund, sponsored by the Monongahela Area Revitalization Corp.
MARC has set up a separate account for the donations that will go toward purchasing bulletproof vests for the Monongahela Police Department.
“FBI statistics show that from 1987-2015, 92% of felonious deaths of law enforcement officers in the line of duty in the United States were due to firearms,” said Monongahela Chief Kevin Harris. “However, the data from cases that show the officer was shot in the torso revealed that those who wore body armor were 76% less likely to be killed than those who did not.”
Monongahela police officers are required to wear a vest, per borough policy.
As of Sept. 1, out of the 22 certified police officers serving Monongahela, New Eagle, Finleyville and Union Township, 15 officers do not have a bulletproof vest that is compliant with the National Institute of Justice standards.
Certified vests run anywhere from $800 to $1,200 each and variations in price are due to the different threat levels or thickness of the body armor.
Monongahela Woman’s Club President Rosemary Bucchianeri presented the idea of a donation to the Vest Fund to her executive board after learning any donation given would double as the police have received a matching federal grant of $6,569.71.
In reality, the Woman’s Club donation means $1,000 for the Monongahela Police Department.
MARC President George Eckert said the fund is more than half-way to its goal and any contribution is appreciated.
MARC is a nonprofit under the IRS Code and all donations are tax deductible.
Support can be sent to: George Eckert, 102 Baywood Drive, Monongahela, PA 15063. Make checks payable to MARC-Police Vest Fund.