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PROFILE
OF A MUSEUM VOLUNTEER Mike’s
mother was employed at a bakery in Dallas, Texas where she became acquainted with
co-worker, Jesse Fuller. They were married in 1959, and the family followed
relatives to California, settling in Madera, California doing farm work.
Three more children, Jesse, Patricia and Robert were later added to the
family. Mike excelled in school and was able to maintain high grades and
still work part time farm jobs to help out with family finances. During his
teen years, Mike quickly realized farm work was not the life style he wanted
to follow, and he began working at other endeavors. Mike and a female
student, were the very first to be enrolled in the State of California
Department of Educations “Work Experience Program”. The program allowed for
their early high school graduation due to having met the required scholastic
requirements and this pilot eventually evolved into a statewide program. In
1968, Mike was at a spaghetti feed with some of his friends who were members
of a CB Radio club. Sue Crawford was there with some friends also, and it was
the beginning of a great friendship. Mike and Sue were married four years
later and they had their only daughter Lisa, in 1977. During
midsummer 1969, Mike suffered an eye injury, and his draft classification was
changed from 1A to 4F with the understanding, that if his vision was to
clear, he could still be eligible for military induction. 1969 was the first
year of the National Lottery Draft and was started during the time of the
height of the Viet Nam conflict. For
the next couple of years and until his 21st birthday, Mike worked ranch jobs and learned many
skills that have served him well to this day. Equipment maintenance,
electrical, plumbing, and carpenter work, as well as a mechanics background
have given Mike a basic knowledge of life’s skills that have gotten him job
offers in many lines of work. During
September 1973, Mike was sworn in as a County of Madera Deputy Sheriff and he
entered for the first time into the world of law enforcement. During 1982,
Mike’s long interest in the military came to fruition when the State Military
Reserve became an option and he enlisted in the Madera Unit. The
transportation of heavy equipment was the vocational skill he had learned
while operating heavy trucks. After being in the reserve for four years, Mike
was promoted to a Staff Sergeant. In the fall of 1987, at the age of 35, Mike
decided to apply for a position with the Fresno Police Department, ever
seeking a more challenging career in law enforcement then was offered in the
small Madera Sheriff’s Department. Beginning
with the patrol bureau located in West Fresno, Mike worked the midnight shift
where drugs and gang violence was a nightly occurrence. Six years later, Mike
was promoted to the position of detective, first starting in the burglary
unit, and later working homicide. Mike involved himself in extra activities
during off hours that were closely related to his law enforcement career.
Working with the Madera County Sheriff’s Department afforded him the
opportunity to be a member of their SWAT Team, the Dive Rescue Team and a
Crime Prevention Advocate. Mike was active in the Sheriff’s Association and
spent a number of years as their Treasurer, Vice president and later
President. His tenure with the Fresno Police Department was no different, as
he was elected to the Fresno Police officers Association as a Director and
served 18 years in that capacity. As a Board Director, Mike spent
considerable time developing political relationships with local, state and
federal legislators that helped to serve the needs of law enforcement and the
public. Mike took part in or chaired
numerous committees,
with his most notable being elected five times to serve as president of the
Police Officers Research Association, Central Valley Chapter that represents
over 80,000 law enforcement officers. When the United States became committed
to engaging in a war on terror in the Middle East, Mike realized the loss of
American troops in the conflict with Iraq was becoming unacceptable.
Americans were being killed while fighting battles that Iraqi soldiers and
police were not participating and in fact, the Iraqis were standing down.
Mike determined that in part, the Iraqi was not engaging in the conflicts
because they had poor or no equipment in which to fight with. Mike felt this
scenario was one that could be addressed by the military. Having the
knowledge, that police safety equipment in the form of surplus was located
all over the United States, Mike decided to found
the “Brotherhood of the Badge” organization. This group, which began with
only six people, started collecting expired and out of date surplus ballistic
vests and other types of police gear that could be shipped to the Iraqi war
front where American forces were training the new Iraqi Army and Police. The
project started with a temporary re-entry into the Army by Invitational
Orders issued by the 4th Infantry Division to assist the 649th Military
Police unit stationed at Camp San Luis Obispo. Mike and the team of five
others, including a retired Brigadier General were covertly included in a
troop movement with the 1st Marines 125th Expeditionary Force from March Air
Force Base to the country of Kuwait. Once in Kuwait, the Brotherhood of the
Badge went their separate ways to the Balad Air
Base in Iraq and the aircraft they were in was attacked while on landing
approach and were forced to exercise evasive maneuvers and counter measures
to avoid a rocket strike. When the plane landed at Balad
they found it was under mortar siege. Mike’s group was picked up a few days
later by elements of the 649th MP unit, who were stationed inside an Iraqi
Police training compound, within the City of Baquobah,
Iraq. The route taken was through a corridor dubbed Ambush Alley that led
into the heart of the “Sunni Triangle”. The aim of their mission was to
deliver the assistance equipment to the front lines of the battle zone, the
place where it was most needed. While Mike was at the station in Baquobah, several attacks were carried out on that post.
The one convoy the group was traveling with,
suffered several casualties to Iraqi police and regular Army troops. None of
the Brotherhood of the Badge members themselves were
engaged by the attackers. The trip was completed with their mission
accomplished, and all returned to California safely. An interesting side note during the trip
was Mike becoming suspicious of pertinent questions being asked of him by an
Iraqi Police officer within their compound. The questioning by the officer
was that of a friendly encounter, but due to the nature of his questions, and
those questions being reported to the U.S. and Iraqi command, the individual
was uncovered as a spy and he was later executed for his spying activities.
On two subsequent trips to Iraq, the delivering of fighting equipment was
deemed a tremendous success to those who received it. This equipment was
delivered and available to the Iraqis a full year and a half before the U.S.
Military were able to accomplish the same process. In March 2008, Mike led
the Brotherhood of the Badge on an expanded mission into the country of
Afghanistan. The trip took the team to the nation’s capital city, Kabul, and
to the U.S. controlled Camp Eggers. Again provisions for the trip were
through orders issued by the U.S. Army. The mission of the trip was to
deliver urgently needed equipment to a Northern Forward Operations Base, Camp
Clark in the Khost Province. The mission was
covered on Middle Eastern television telling of the group’s intentions, and
as a result, generated a covert plan by the Taliban, to kill the team using a
suicide bomber. The plot was uncovered and a Polish Commando Team took charge
leading and escorting the team through the region. Many high ranking members
of the Afghan government, that included the Prime Minister, greeted the group
and requested that the Brotherhood of the Badge continue their assistance. As
a non-profit organization, the Brotherhood of the Badge has outfitted over
27,400 troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and collected almost three million
dollars in cash that was used to purchase new equipment. The organization is
100% voluntary and takes no salary and maintains no overhead. By undocumented
accounts, the lives saved by the Brotherhood of the Badge program have
exceeded more than 40 individuals who were wounded, but were able to survive
because of the equipment supplied to them. As an acknowledgement of the efforts of
the Brotherhood of the Badge organization, in the fall of 2004, Mike was
given the prestigious Kenny Joseph award as “Officer of the Year” for the
State of California. On the local level, the Fresno Police
Department in 2008 awarded Mike the Meritorious Service award for his
contributions toward the war efforts and the resulting lives saved, and the
bonding efforts with forces of coalition governments. A third acknowledgement
came on Memorial Day, at the Fresno Memorial Gardens, where Mike was chosen
as Military Honoree for 2010. A fourth award he received,
was in February 2012 by the Fresno Police Officers Association, as the 2011
officer of the year. In the fall of 2010, Mike joined the
American Legion Post 11 in Madera, and in the course of only one year was
appointed manager of the post and road captain for the American Legion Riders
Group. This shows that Mike is a constant with having the abilities to help
and support veteran’s organizations and causes. On August 1, 2011, Mike assumed the
position of Deputy Director of the Fresno based Veterans Memorial Museum,
“Home of the Legion of Valor”. Every day at the museum is a history lesson
for Mike who shares his days with the elder veteran volunteers of WWII,
Korea, Viet Nam and Desert Storm. The museum contains a treasure trove of
military artifacts, and Mike considers working here a continuing honor. |
