Gilford's Alyssa Raxter is NH DARE officer of the year

GILFORD — Gilford Police Officer Alyssa Raxter earned the New Hampshire D.A.R.E. Officer of the Year Award last month due to her work with Lakes Region youth.

“It was a complete surprise to me,” Raxter said. “It's awarded for not only contributions to D.A.R.E., but to the youth in the community in general.”

D.A.R.E., or Drug Abuse Resistance Education, is a program that traces its roots to 1980s Los Angeles with the goal of keeping youth away from substance abuse via police outreach, videos and other educational materials.

Raxter also works as a school resource officer at Gilford High, and has recently taken on a new job working with the Special Olympics.

“I partnered with the high school to organize a NAMI [National Alliance on Mental Illness] lock on mental health awareness, I volunteer for the Special Olympics, raise money through Beards for Bucks for the child advocacy center, and I’m a certified child passenger safety technician,” Raxter said.

When asked why she was so focused on working with children, Raxter highlighted her enjoyment of the community policing aspect of her job.

“I enjoy building relationships and being a mentor,” Raxter explained. “The position at the school opened up, and I thought I’d try it. I never saw that as my path when I started, but I trusted people around me and I really fell in love with it.”

Despite Raxter’s extensive work with children in the community, she doesn’t have any of her own.

“I always joked that I didn’t need kids,” Raxter said. “I had 1,200 of my own at the school.”

The officer’s interest in the Special Olympics even took her to a new career, although she’ll still serve the department part time.

“I’m working for Special Olympics New Hampshire, managing the law enforcement torch run. They have a partnership with law enforcement fundraisers all over the state,” Raxter explained. "Winni Dip, torch run, Fueling Dreams, Tip a Cop — there’s a bunch of fundraisers that partner law enforcement with Special Olympics. I’ll be working full time to partner with other police departments and raise funds.”

In a Facebook post the Gilford Police Department congratulated Raxter on her award, calling her selfless commitment to the community “unmatched.”