Stoughton Police Sergeant Bonney and SHS Grad Gilbert Honored at Brockton Rox Game

Stoguhton was well represented at the Brockton Rox's celebration of the annual National Night Out Against Crime, with and Stoughton High graduate Kevin Gilbert among the Brockton area public safety officials and local residents honored for having a positive impact on their communities.

Bonney and Gilbert were recognized on field during the Brockton Rox's game against the Seacoast Mavericks the evening of Aug. 7.

Executive Officer Robert Devine presented Bonney, a 10-year veteran of the SPD, with a plaque, which credits him with helping to expand the department's reach and increase its profile through the use of multimedia and praises Bonney for making it "a personal mission to warn the youth of Stoughton and many other communities about the dangers of drinking and driving" through a program he designed.

"Through this initiative [Bonney] has touched the lives of hundreds of youth in the area and has worked tirelessly to increase awareness on this important issue," the plaque states.

Bonney's sister was killed by a drunk driver in 1990 when she was 18-years-old. Devine said Bonney shares this "story of personal tragedy" urging teens in the area "not to be a statistic come prom morning" in a program he said "resonates with kids."

"The whole point of National Night Out Against Crime is recognizing people who go out of their way in the area of crime prevention. [Bonney has] done that his entire career," Devine said.

Bonney said he was humbled by the honor.

"It's nice to be mentioned in the same sentence with the people [from the Stoughton Police Department] who have got this in the past," Bonney said, citing Jim O'Connor, Roger Hardy and Donna McNamara as past honorees.

"This is a great event," he said. "It's nice for the department to be recognized with these other towns."

Bonney, now a sergeant, was a school resource officer when Gilbert was in the Stoughton schools.

"There is no one better than him to win this," Gilbert said.

Gilbert is a 2009 graduate of and is the son of Edward Gilbert, the Director of Food Service for the Stoughton Schools. He is a student at Bridgewater State College and has interned with the Randolph Police Department for the past two years.

Randolph Police Detective Christine Morse presented Gilbert with his plaque, which thanks him for his "commitment, dedication and time he has voluntarily given to the residents of Randolph."

"He volunteers tirelessly for the Randolph Police Department," Morse said. "He's been an awesome asset."

Gilbert, a former varsity hockey and baseball player while at SHS, also is an assistant coach for the Stoughton Legion baseball team. He has family in law enforcement and said he would also like to go into policing after college.

He said policing is about "helping other people."

"TV shows portray it as knocking down doors. it's so much more than that," Gilbert said.

The National Night Out Against Crime, hosted by Partnership For Safer Communities, took place at Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, home of the Rox.

Police departments from Abington, Avon, Bridgewater, Brockton, East Bridgewater, Easton, Holbrook, Randolph, Stoughton, West Bridgewater and Whitman participated in the festivities, which included a petting zoo, pie eating contest, K-9 demonstration, appearances by McGruff the Crime Dog and Sparky the Fire Dog, and a motorcade of local police vehicles.

Stoughton K9 officer John Lydstone and his police canine participated in the K9 demonstration with the Brockton Police.