UP officer Mackey to receive Hometown Hero Award

Tad Mackey

Officer Tad Mackey, long recognized at SUNY Fredonia for his high level of expertise and willingness to assist anyone in need as a member of University Police, will receive the Hometown Hero Award for Law Enforcement from the American Red Cross of Southwestern New York.

Mackey will be one of seven Hometown Hero Award recipients in various categories honored by the Red Cross, in conjunction with NRG Dunkirk Power LLC, at a ceremony on Wednesday, May 20, at Moon Brook Country Club in Jamestown.

The veteran SUNY Fredonia officer is being recognized for a high level of professionalism and dedication to the campus during the last 21 years, contributions made to area police departments and many accolades received in his career.

“All his work and dedication at SUNY Fredonia have been pretty remarkable,” said Red Cross executive director Vince Horrigan.

A highly trained member of University Police, Mackey is a member of the rapid response team that responds to any kind of emergency on campus and is also the department’s evidence technician. He willingly performs duties that are less attractive but essential to every police department, said police chief Ann Burns.

“We are very proud that this kind of honor comes not only to Officer Mackey, but also to University Police. They are one in the same. That’s very significant,” Burns said. “We are always receiving compliments about his assistance to the community. I think he truly is an everyday hero,” Burns added. He is the first University Police officer to receive the award.

Mackey is a member of the Chautauqua County Forensics Investigative Team, which assists local departments in crime scene investigations, and also a SUNY Fredonia graduate. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, with a minor in Philosophy, in 1987, and served as a police officer at SUNY Cortland before transferring to SUNY Fredonia in 1991.