The Toledo Police Department’s Officer Melissa Stephens received badge No. 1 last week, becoming TPD’s most senior officer and joining her nephew, Kamal Parker, who holds Toledo Fire’s badge No. 1.

Officer Stephens has been an officer at Toledo Police Department for nearly 32 years and graduated from the police academy in December, 1993. She is stationed at the Area Office on Aging and leads the retired senior volunteer patrol program.

Despite her lengthy career in public safety, it wasn’t something that she ever expected to do. She has three brothers who were police officers and had heard about their jobs, but becoming a police officer was a sort of spur-of-the-moment decision.

“My sister and one of my old friends, we just decided to take the test,” Officer Stephens said. “It was nothi

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