BVT designs breast cancer awareness wrap for Upton Police cruisers

The spirit of giving back is part of the culture at Blackstone Valley Tech. Each October, pink is worn with pride, and giving back initiatives are coordinated to raise awareness and funds during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The Upton Police Department and many public safety agencies participate in the Pink Patch Project — an innovative public awareness campaign designed to support cancer research organizations in combating this devastating disease and bring attention to the fight against breast cancer by wearing pink patches and badges and selling collectible uniform patches each October.

This year, in addition to the collectible patches and t-shirts, the Upton Police Department is also selling face masks to raise money for the Milford Regional Healthcare Foundation’s Olivia Fund for Cancer Care, helping patients undergoing cancer treatments locally. If you are interested in joining the fight against cancer with some stylish merchandise, it is available at the police station.

“It has been an honor to assist our town’s police department with their Pink Patch Project Campaign by applying pink patch decals and graphics to their cruisers,” said Tom Lamont, Painting & Design Technology instructor. “Last year we applied decals to windows, and this year a vinyl wrap graphic to the hood of a few cruisers. It is an excellent opportunity for our students to use their design skills in the application process.”

Providing professional policing to the community for over 31 years, Carl Ambrosino has been an active member of the Upton Police Department with twenty-four years as a School Resource Officer. When Ambrosino arrived at BVT on October 6 to have the graphic applied to his cruiser, he was in for a surprise.

Ambrosino will retire on November 6. To let him know how appreciated he is and to thank him for his service, the P&D instructors coordinated with the police department and arranged to have students and staff sign the printed graphic before installing the well-wishes on his hood. Instructors Tom Lamont and Tim Buono had their P&D students assisting on this project. Natalie Bolduc of Bellingham, a senior, helped prepare and print the graphic, and Ashley Haley of Milford and Amanda Brochu of Uxbridge, juniors, helped apply the signed graphic to the hood of Ambrosino’s cruiser.

“I was genuinely surprised to see the hand-written messages of appreciation,” said Ambrosino. “This is a wonderful surprise, I was on campus the day before, and no one spilled the beans.”