THUNDER BAY -- Michael Biloski’s day started out a little rough, but the city’s newest police constable went on to make history.
Biloski had trouble getting out of his driveway thanks to a springtime snowstorm, then realized after arriving ahead of the swearing-in ceremony he’d forgotten part of his uniform at home.
But once the minor hitches were sorted out, things went smoothly from there.
Biloski, who was joined by his wife, family and friends, became the first ever officer sworn into duty at the Thunder Bay Courthouse, a distinction not lost on anyone in attendance.
“It’ll feel great 10 to 15 years down the road when I have children to drive by the courthouse an say I was the first person sworn in there,” Biloski said.
He added it’s been a dream to join the police service since he was a teenager.
“I’ve always been a kind person. I’ve always wanted to help people, so I thought what better way to do that than policing,” he said.
Police Chief J.P. Levesque said the ceremony marked an important milestone.
“This building is just incredible and to have Justice (Dino) Di Giuseppe do the swearing in is nice. He does a really good job of it,” Levesque said.
“It’s great.”
The chief added it’s a little unusual to only swear in a single officer, but said due to budget constraints, they’ve had to hold off on most new hires.
“Probably the next group, later this year, will be a bigger group,” said Levesque, adding the service is now at 222 uniformed officers, plus about 100 civilian employees.
DiGuiseppe said the ceremony was an opportunity for renewal and reaffirmation of the Thunder Bay Police Service and offered up advice to Biloski, telling him the job required dedication, courage, patience and personality.
It also comes with power.
“With that power comes responsibility,” the judge reminded.
Biloski said he expects to take his first official shift sometime next week.
