A Second Chance

By Yahaira Trejo

Lead Safety Intervention Officer Tony Garcia’s past is a product of a second chance. Garcia has a rough past but has changed it for the better.

In high school, Garcia was expelled for carrying illegal substances. Garcia states this is how he was caught, “My pager went off, before cell phones, we had pagers, and it would beep, mine beeped in class, and security came down.” 

Safety Intervention Officer Tony Garcia learned from his past mistakes and is doing better, trying to help students and keep them safe! Photo taken by Yahaira Trejo.

“With my parents, it was a big deal because I was popular in school and the community, and it was heartbreaking for my mom and dad. It was so heartbreaking to see them so sad and hurt for a discretion that I made.” Garcia kept striving for his education, graduated high school, joined the military and then became a police officer. Garcia coached basketball and varsity baseball at Eisenhower High School and, a few years later, became a safety intervention officer. He has worked for the Rialto Unified School District for 21 years. 

Wendy Hunt, the security guard who caught him in high school, was now like family to him. 

Hunt has been Garcia's good friend and decided to keep in touch with Garcia through the military and through his police career. 

Now, back on a high school campus as a safety office, Garcia has caught students smoking in restrooms, and he states, “It makes me sad because, at that age group, they don't understand the negative effects. Smoking and doing substances has a negative effect on their mentality and mental health, and for the school, it just makes everything slow down into a screeching halt because they want to be smoking.”  

Garcia gives this advice to students who smoke or do illegal substances. “I believe everyone grows out of that, and when they mature, they’re going to look back and say, damn, we should’ve listened to the adults, the teachers, or staff members. My advice is to put the pens down and focus on school and school activities.”

Garica is determined to help guide students away from harmful habits. His past is unexpected: "I think it's pretty wild to think that a security guard who got caught with drugs back in high school is now working as a high school security guard and police officer. Life can take some unexpected turns.”