Easton Police Officer Earns National D.A.R.E. Award For 27 Years Of Service

EASTON, Conn. — Officer Mark Pastor has been selected to receive the Daryl F. Gates D.A.R.E. Lifetime Achievement Award in honor of his 27 years of teaching the D.A.R.E. curriculum to students in Easton, Police Chief Tim Shaw announced.“Officer Mark,” as he is known throughout Easton, was selected from entries from across the nation.

Officer Mark Pastor has been teaching the D.A.R.E. curriculum to students in Easton for over 27 years.
Photo Credit: *Easton Police Department*

Karen Tensa

04/26/2017 5:30 a.m.

Along with teaching the students, Pastor has been an instructor throughout the Northeast of other officers and he is the lead senior mentor for the Connecticut State Police.

"Among Mark’s greatest accomplishments is his connection with the children he teaches and the relationships that last a lifetime," Shaw said in a statement.

D.A.R.E. — short for Drug Abuse Resistance Education — is a substance abuse prevention education program that seeks to prevent use of controlled drugs, membership in gangs, and violent behavior among preteens and teens.

In June 2002, Pastor was voted the Connecticut D.A.R.E. Officer of the Year.

He will be honored during the 30th Annual D.A.R.E. International Training Conference in Grapevine, Texas, in July.

Click here to follow Daily Voice Trumbull-Monroe and receive free news updates.