Thought some of you wouldn't mind reading an interesting article that was in today's St Louis Post Dispatch about a good friend of mine, Mark O'Brien. Mark used to own The Sportcenter in south St Louis. Mark would be considered an 'A' player and a one pocket specialist. He is looking forward to being able to compete again in pool in the international Olympics they have for firemen and police men. Louie Roberts was the one time house pro in the 1980's at The Sportscenter. The room is still open & is action friendly. They have a great pit, with a nice tight superb playing gold crown & is nice spot to really sweat a good match.
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/F71835CD3C1B1DCF862571AE000D5047?OpenDocument
News > St. Louis City / County > Story
Officer, 50, is back for second stint on force
By Kim Bell
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
07/17/2006
Friendly ribbing followed Mark O'Brien just about everywhere as he worked his way through 34 grueling weeks at the St. Louis Police Academy.
It was O'Brien's turn for a sit-ups test.
"Go, old man, go," a classmate cheered.
O'Brien had to do 25 sit-ups in one minute. He did 57.Advertisement
Days before the class graduation ceremony, a few razzed him again.
"You gonna need a cane, grandpa, to cross the stage?"
O'Brien laughed it off. After all, he expected some ribbing. At an age when many cops are retiring, 50-year-old O'Brien was one of 19 recruits, most in their 20s, in the academy class that graduated last week.
"O'Brien more than held his own," said Police Officer Clarence E. Hines, the class supervisor. He finished sixth in physical training.
O'Brien's first roll call as a new patrolman comes at 3 p.m. today in the department's 1st District, in south St. Louis.
O'Brien has worn the badge before. At the age of 23, he joined the St. Louis Police Department, following in the footsteps of his father, Lt. Charlie O'Brien.
Mark O'Brien was a policeman from 1979 to 1986 and quit to start his own business, a billiard parlor in Affton. The industry took off, thanks in large part to the popularity of the movie "The Color of Money." O'Brien also was part-owner of Dream Sports Network and did voice-overs as a play-by-play announcer for sports fantasy cassette tapes.
But it was his yearly gig as a ring announcer at a boxing event that drew him back into police work.
O'Brien was the ring announcer for the Guns 'n Hoses boxing match between police and firefighters. He'd catch up with old friends and see the camaraderie between the officers. He'd have pangs of regret that he left the force.
"That's when the juices started flowing again," O'Brien said. "I always wondered how I would've done if I had stayed."
Last fall, three weeks before he started at the academy, he underwent knee surgery to remove a ruptured, detached tendon. It healed nicely, and O'Brien's work on the track inspired other recruits as they worked up to a five-mile run.
"I'd see him and think, 'If a 50-year-old can run on the tracks and not fall out on runs, then I know I can do it,'" said Andrew Kleffner, 27. "He's almost the age of my dad and mom, but he could outrun most of the younger guys."
Many city police officers are retiring in their late 40s or early 50s. Older recruits are rare, but not unheard of. In 1996, a 51-year-old graduated from the St. Louis police academy.
At the St. Louis County and Municipal Police Academy, one or two recruits a year are in their 40s. They're often retired teachers or former military workers who want a new career. The oldest recruit in the county since 1980 was 60 years old; two were 54, and one was 55.
Police call people who quit and then rejoin the force "retreads."
Those who return after only a few years may take a six-week refresher course at the academy. But that didn't apply to O'Brien, who had been gone too long and had to take the entire 34-week course.
Before Hines knew O'Brien, he worried that a former cop returning to the academy could have an ego that contaminates the other recruits.
"He could've been a Mr. know-it-all, but I was so wrong," said Hines, 37. "O'Brien is, by far, the most humble guy I've ever met. He was a valuable resource to me."
The biggest shock to O'Brien was the length of the academy. It used to be a 16-week course.
And how does policing St. Louis in the early 1980s compare with what he now faces?
O'Brien sees several differences. For starters, officers used to have only a six-shot revolver and nightstick. They now have a semiautomatic pistol with 16 rounds, a Taser and a can of Mace. Squad cars are equipped with computers, and reports he used to write by hand are now done on computer.
O'Brien said he plans on staying with the department until the mandatory retirement age of 65.
"I love putting on the uniform," he said. "When that badge is on, it really stands for something."
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/F71835CD3C1B1DCF862571AE000D5047?OpenDocument
News > St. Louis City / County > Story
Officer, 50, is back for second stint on force
By Kim Bell
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
07/17/2006
Friendly ribbing followed Mark O'Brien just about everywhere as he worked his way through 34 grueling weeks at the St. Louis Police Academy.
It was O'Brien's turn for a sit-ups test.
"Go, old man, go," a classmate cheered.
O'Brien had to do 25 sit-ups in one minute. He did 57.Advertisement
Days before the class graduation ceremony, a few razzed him again.
"You gonna need a cane, grandpa, to cross the stage?"
O'Brien laughed it off. After all, he expected some ribbing. At an age when many cops are retiring, 50-year-old O'Brien was one of 19 recruits, most in their 20s, in the academy class that graduated last week.
"O'Brien more than held his own," said Police Officer Clarence E. Hines, the class supervisor. He finished sixth in physical training.
O'Brien's first roll call as a new patrolman comes at 3 p.m. today in the department's 1st District, in south St. Louis.
O'Brien has worn the badge before. At the age of 23, he joined the St. Louis Police Department, following in the footsteps of his father, Lt. Charlie O'Brien.
Mark O'Brien was a policeman from 1979 to 1986 and quit to start his own business, a billiard parlor in Affton. The industry took off, thanks in large part to the popularity of the movie "The Color of Money." O'Brien also was part-owner of Dream Sports Network and did voice-overs as a play-by-play announcer for sports fantasy cassette tapes.
But it was his yearly gig as a ring announcer at a boxing event that drew him back into police work.
O'Brien was the ring announcer for the Guns 'n Hoses boxing match between police and firefighters. He'd catch up with old friends and see the camaraderie between the officers. He'd have pangs of regret that he left the force.
"That's when the juices started flowing again," O'Brien said. "I always wondered how I would've done if I had stayed."
Last fall, three weeks before he started at the academy, he underwent knee surgery to remove a ruptured, detached tendon. It healed nicely, and O'Brien's work on the track inspired other recruits as they worked up to a five-mile run.
"I'd see him and think, 'If a 50-year-old can run on the tracks and not fall out on runs, then I know I can do it,'" said Andrew Kleffner, 27. "He's almost the age of my dad and mom, but he could outrun most of the younger guys."
Many city police officers are retiring in their late 40s or early 50s. Older recruits are rare, but not unheard of. In 1996, a 51-year-old graduated from the St. Louis police academy.
At the St. Louis County and Municipal Police Academy, one or two recruits a year are in their 40s. They're often retired teachers or former military workers who want a new career. The oldest recruit in the county since 1980 was 60 years old; two were 54, and one was 55.
Police call people who quit and then rejoin the force "retreads."
Those who return after only a few years may take a six-week refresher course at the academy. But that didn't apply to O'Brien, who had been gone too long and had to take the entire 34-week course.
Before Hines knew O'Brien, he worried that a former cop returning to the academy could have an ego that contaminates the other recruits.
"He could've been a Mr. know-it-all, but I was so wrong," said Hines, 37. "O'Brien is, by far, the most humble guy I've ever met. He was a valuable resource to me."
The biggest shock to O'Brien was the length of the academy. It used to be a 16-week course.
And how does policing St. Louis in the early 1980s compare with what he now faces?
O'Brien sees several differences. For starters, officers used to have only a six-shot revolver and nightstick. They now have a semiautomatic pistol with 16 rounds, a Taser and a can of Mace. Squad cars are equipped with computers, and reports he used to write by hand are now done on computer.
O'Brien said he plans on staying with the department until the mandatory retirement age of 65.
"I love putting on the uniform," he said. "When that badge is on, it really stands for something."
