2020 -- S 2496

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2020

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

CONGRATULATING POLICE CHIEF JOHN S. MACDONALD ON HIS RETIREMENT

FROM THE COVENTRY POLICE DEPARTMENT AFTER MORE THAN TWENTY-FIVE

YEARS OF DISTINGUISHED SERVICE

     Introduced By: Senators Raptakis, and Rogers

     Date Introduced: February 25, 2020

     Referred To: Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar

     WHEREAS, Colonel John S. MacDonald joined the Coventry Police Department in

1994, and thanks to his tireless work ethic and exemplary record of service, he steadily rose

through the departmental ranks, culminating in 2015, when he became the Town of Coventry’s

14th Police Chief; and

     WHEREAS, As Police Chief, Colonel MacDonald developed a strategic plan that

included the attainment of important goals including the development of a new Police

Department Headquarters that opened in January of 2020, and gaining accreditation in 2019

through the Rhode Island Police Accreditation Commission. Other accomplishments under

Colonel MacDonald’s watch include significant improvements in the department’s school safety,

cyber protection, and investigative capabilities; and

     WHEREAS, Colonel MacDonald attained a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the

University of Connecticut, and a Master’s degree in Strategic Studies from the United States War

College. For more than twenty-eight years, he served our nation with honor and valor as a

member of the Rhode Island National Guard. He holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and is an

Army helicopter pilot who saw combat in Iraq. He also served as the Operations Manager for the

Rhode Island Army Aviation Battalion in Kuwait. In recognition of his service to our nation,

Colonel MacDonald was awarded the Bronze Star; and

     WHEREAS, Colonel MacDonald is retiring from the Coventry Police Department, but

will continue to serve our state and nation as the new Rhode Island National Guard State Army

Aviation Officer; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

hereby congratulates Police Chief John S. MacDonald on his retirement from the Coventry Police

Department and wishes him well in his new duties as the Rhode Island National Guard State

Army Aviation Officer; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Coventry Police Chief, John S. MacDonald.

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