We recently connected with Amanda Clay and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I am a member of the North Fulton SWAT Crisis Negotiation Team, a proud member of the Bike Patrol Unit, and I cherish my role as an Advisor for the Alpharetta Police Exploring Post 919:

Every time I negotiate it is beautifully terrifying. A true honor, a privilege to be let into a person’s innermost thoughts. The place where only they have been, their solace from the storms of life. To be allowed to sit with them in their greatest moments of fear is a beautiful thing that I never take for granted. A reminder that no matter how badly a person has been treated, no matter their experiences, they have a small part of themselves tucked away and protected from outside. They have a final piece of themselves just waiting and longing to be heard and loved- the final piece of their own humanity. A piece to be protected at all costs, the piece that I have to find and nourish. The piece I have to convince them to let me see. The piece I love until they can love it too.

My purpose in life is to love my community; I hope my legacy is one of loving even those who may find it difficult to love themselves- and to keep loving them until they find their foothold in our world.

I pour this portion of my core beliefs into everything I do. The Police Exploring program I adore, the program which took me from a wayward youth and propelled me into the career I now enjoy, is one example. Having the privilege to help guide our youth through an exploration of a future career in Public Safety is rewarding in and of itself, but getting to walk with these young adults through some of the tribulations of young adulthood is the real treasure- to get to invest in their future. Having grown up in this program myself, it is a real pleasure to continue meeting with these youth weekly. If you know of youth between the ages of 13-21 please have them visit www.alpharettapoliceexplorers.com to learn more or follow us @alpharettapoliceexplorers

Finally, I have found great joy in using the simple bicycle as a conduit through which to spread joy in my community. I have made wonderful friends through the organization Bike Alpharetta, (www.bikealpharetta.org ) which organizes wonderful bicycle-centered community events. My unit mates and I have also taken great pleasure in hosting iCan Bike Alpharetta every summer for the past few years, a program through which we help teach forty members of the special needs community how to ride a two-wheeled bicycle without the need for adaptive devices. This year’s camp is the week of June 20th and we are currently recruiting volunteers. Check us out at www.icanbikealpharetta.org and @icanbikealpharetta

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started my career with the City of Alpharetta as an Alpharetta Police Explorer, the youth program hosted by the City of Alpharetta. It is also where I met my husband. Today my husband and I run the Police Exploring program we met in, as we both fulfilled our goals of becoming Police Officers. The Alpharetta Police Exploring program still meets weekly at the Alpharetta Police Department. To learn more about Police Exploring check out our website: www.alpharettapoliceexplorers.com

I eventually made my way onto the Bike Patrol Unit, where I have served since 2013. I particularly enjoy using the bicycle as a tool through which to interact with my community because it has fewer barriers than typical patrol vehicles- like cars. Patrolling my community via bicycle has afforded me the opportunity to meet community members on a more personal level while seeing everything from a different perspective. In short, it changes the way you Police, it has to, and it opens your eyes to quality of life issues that perhaps would be more difficult to notice if I were not on a bicycle.

Through the Bike Patrol Unit and Community Services Unit, my unit mates and I have been able to host iCan Bike Alpharetta which is a program that teaches members of the special needs community how to ride a bicycle without the need for adaptive devices. We have also worked with our Recreation and Parks Department to create a program to encourage Senior Citizens to ride bicycles! Well, really they are adult-sized tricycles, but it is fun none-the less! In short, the Bike Patrol unit believes everyone can benefit from safe cycling.

Finally, I am humbled by being afforded the opportunity to be a member of our Crisis Negotiation Team. It has given me many opportunities through which to grow as a person while serving those in need; a task which I believe is or should be at the very core of what service as a Police Officer is truly about.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Always operate from a place of truth.

This seems like a simple idea, but it would surprise you how often we miss the mark on speaking from a place of truth and acting upon it. Remember that purposely omitting information can be dishonest and the truth has a way of eventually being set free- even if we do not think it to be so.

Always be honest with your team, if something is difficult, say it is so. There is nothing wrong with a little bit of vulnerability from a leader if he or she must admit an impending hardship. I believe doing so up front will help keep team morale high when the hardship does come about and your team will respect you for being truthful with them in all things.

Remember, the truth will remain the truth no matter how many people believe it- so stick to it.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

When I was a Police Explorer, and a young adult, I truly thought that once I graduated from the Police Academy I would know everything there was to know about Policing. I believed I would never be scared, confused, or need help while performing my job because I would have learned all I needed.

Man was I totally wrong….

I still learn something new every day and I cherish those moments, learning is part of living and the best of us are not afraid to be wrong. I wish someone had told me that it was OK to be wrong earlier in my career, just as I wish someone had told me I would frequently be scared for myself or someone else. I wish someone had told me that feeling those things is not wrong, it means I am human. I think sometimes popular culture portrays those in the Policing profession as unfeeling and that simply is not the case- that idea really needs to change because it is not healthy for anyone.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.icanbikealpharetta.org; www.alpharettapoliceexplorers.com
• Instagram: @icanbikealpharetta; @alpharettapoliceexplorers
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alpharettapoliceexplorers/ https://www.facebook.com/ICanBikeAlpharetta/