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PUNTA GORDA POLICE DEPARTMENT Interim Captain Dylan Renz, drenz@pgorda.us

Punta Gorda Police Department’s Volunteers

In the City of Punta Gorda there are 81 people in yellow shirts who work to make our community a
better place to live. They are the Punta Gorda Police Volunteers. They patrol the streets and canals
rain or shine. In addition, they perform administrative tasks in the department to free employees to
concentrate on police work.

The Volunteers on Patrol drive the streets of Punta
Gorda keeping fire lanes clear, keeping handicap
parking slots available for authorized users, directing traffic at city
events, and maintaining a courier service for police materials among the
city offices, county jail and the Charlotte County Justice Center. They
extend the eyes
and ears of the
police department
by multiplying the
number of patrols
within the
community.

The Volunteer Marine Patrol covers every section of canals in
Punta Gorda (Punta Gorda Isles, Burnt Store Isles, and Emerald
Point) at least once a month. They patrol five days a week, double
covering weekends with the Marine Officer and ensuring a police
boat on the water the days the Marine Officer is off-duty. They
perform safety patrols, cautioning boaters on wake limits, use of life jackets for children under six years of age, blocking
navigable waters, or any unsafe boating activity. They perform search and rescue operations for overturned small
sailboats and for missing boaters in waters near the City. They assist the City’s canal maintenance folks by reporting
damage to navigation aids and seawall problems. They remove or secure objects in the canal that can damage boats.
They conduct depth checks on canals and inlets for possible dredging. They assist Code Compliance for issues that
require attention from the water side of canals.

The Administrative Volunteers are most times the first point of contact
with the public in the lobby of the police department. Aside from their
main function as the department’s Director of First Impressions, they
provide assistance in mail distribution, special projects, and youth
programs such as the Do the Right Thing and the Jammers Basketball
League. In addition, they assist with the agency’s Quality Assurance
Program and Fingerprinting efforts.

This past year, police volunteers donated over 10,000 hours of service!
If you are interested in joining or learning more about the Punta Gorda
Police Department’s Volunteer Program, please contact the VIP
Coordinator, Dennis Christman at dchristman@pgorda.us or at
(941) 575-5535.

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