While most people are afraid of the dangers of becoming a cop, the Police Explorers train to take on the responsibility of protecting the community.

“I’ve wanted to be a policeman since about 4th grade,” Jacob Hernandez, junior and Police Explorer, said. “I want to be an Illinois State Trooper, but [right now] I just like helping out the community at events and other things.”

The Police Explorer post in Lake Zurich, which celebrated its 20th anniversary last April teaches kids about police work, according to Collin Gaffney, Lake Zurich Police Department detective.

“[The explorer post] will help kids learn what being a police officer is all about,” Gaffney said. “The explorers learn about building searches, prisoner searches, and physical defense.”

The explorers meet every other Tuesday in a classroom to study scenarios like traffic stops and building searches, according to Kyle Oleksy, a 2013 graduate who who has been a corporal in Police Explorers for six years. During the next meeting they go out and practice the scenarios first hand.

“It puts you in a whole different world,” Oleksy said. “It’s a chance for people [14-21 years old] to get a taste of what it’s like to be a cop.”

Explorers learn everything they need to know for a career in law enforcement. They also help the police by attending festivals, helping with traffic control, and getting first hand experience in ride-alongs with patrol officers.

“My favorite part is coming out to help with community events,” Oleksy said. “I get to interact with the public and help make a positive impact in the community.”

Not all the Police Explorers want to become an officer. The program teaches explorers lots of lessons which are applicable in many different careers, according to Gaffney. Some of them, like Oleksy, want to join federal branches.

“What I am going for is network engineering and security,” Oleksy said. “After this I will be seeking a government job like the FBI, [which will] give me a lead against everyone else because I already know how police officers think and what they want.”

Recently, police have been getting a bad rap, but all they want to do is help people, Oleksy said. Oleksy likes to help people, which he says is a lot more fun than yelling at people.

“People don’t understand that we just want to help you,” Oleksy said. “I enjoy helping as much as anyone else here, and that’s something we strive to do all the time.”