Midland Park July 17, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 5 Lombardo, Tillson sworn in as new police officers Regional High School. The 24-year-old said he was happy to have secured a job in a small community where he could have a good feel for the town and better relate to the residents. Tillson, a Little Falls resident, has an associate degree from Bergen Community College and is enrolled in the BA/MA program at John Jay College in New York City. He has served as a special policeman for the City of Hackensack in the H-Cop program. He was a four-year varsity ice hockey player at Passaic Valley High School. Tillson, 26 and single, said he feels he will be a good fit for Midland Park and its police department and looks forward to providing good service, particularly interacting with young people. The two new officers replace officer Michael Canonico, who will be leaving to join the police department in another town, and Brendan Burke, who resigned last November to take a similar position in his hometown of Hawthorne. Burke was originally replaced by Michael Marcellari, but he resigned soon after beginning training at the police academy in January. Left: Ringwood Police Chief Bernard Lombardi pins the new badge on his son Matthew, while his wife Debbie and Mayor Patrick ‘Bud’ O’Hagan look on. Right: Diane Tillson pins the new badge on her son Jason. Two new police officers were sworn into the Midland Park Police Department last week to fill vacancies in the 14-member force. Matthew Lombardo was hired as of July 1 and is attending the Bergen County Law and Public Service Institute. Jason Tillson, scheduled to graduate from the Passaic County Police Academy on July 25 under the alternate route program, will begin his duties in Midland Park on Aug. 1. Their salary will be $32,260 per year as per the PBA contract for a probationary officer. “They make a good addition to our police department. I look forward to having them on board and becoming integrated with the town and our residents,” said Councilman Nick Papapietro, the public safety liaison. He added that the department committee had submitted a good group of candidates for the governing body to interview, and selecting the two finalists had been challenging for the council as a whole. Lombardo, a Ringwood resident whose father is the police chief in that community, is a graduate of Providence College and served in the Army National Guard as a Black Hawk pilot. He was an ice hockey player at Lakeland