Sadly I have not been in contact with Sam Caltagerone in many years since he retired from the City of Pittsburgh Police Force and he passed last year.
But back in the 1970's I was a member of Law Enforcement Explorers Post 777 which Sam ran.
Over the years well over 200 young men and women where members of this post which was out of old No 7# Police station on Jane Street in South Side and we meet at the Sarah Kaufman House .
I had a lot of fun in the post and we got to travel to many places to learn and see law enforcement officers at work I considered a career some where in law enforcement at one time but had to give it up when I had surgery to repair a congenital knee problem and ended up in private security where I was able to establish an electrical and electronics business doing alarm systems. As far as I know I am the only one involved in any kind of security /law enforcement activity at this point. I have never run across any of the others with all the times I have been in court for customers and law enforcement agency's I interact with.
I really enjoyed the post though not some of the members . We went to Toronto to see the Royal Mounted Police train and an officer dressed in a traditional red uniform for use to take pictures we also went to Florida to see how police handled bikers week in Daytona and got to see temporary police headquarters in the Daytona 500 race track. Unfortunately it did not go as well with housing as planned but that's another story.
We also went to Wright Patterson Air-force base to observe military police and stayed over night at the now closed Rickenbacker Air Field . I missed the trip to NY no one bothered to call and tell me anything about it as I had missed a meeting because I was sick but that's just the way people are never check to make sure your OK but call you friend.
I left the post in 79 when I hit maximum age your allowed to join and was off trying to get my career going.
I would last see Sam when I went to his house in early 80's to fix his AC unit he was talking about moving to Florida at one point.
Unfortunately I found out too late to go see Sam at his funeral but I signed his quest book online and was contacted by his daughter who thanked me for mentioning all the good Sam did with the explorers as no one else had bothered to show up or say anything about it.
Dam shame an officer does all this good in his life to get forgotten in the end.
But then again many of those I was in the explorers with may not even be in Pittsburgh any more many moved to pursue jobs after the mills closed.
Unfortunately one of our members Herb was murdered in a horrific beheading after he was robbed at adult book store where he was a clerk in 1980's I am sure it broke Sams heart if he knew about it .
