Officer Juan Rodriguez, 58, is the community service officer for the Miami-Dade Police Department’s district in the Town of Miami Lakes.
In 2016, he was named Municipal Police Officer of the Year during the 41st Annual Citizens Crime Watch of Miami-Dade award ceremony.
Rodriguez lives in Hialeah with his wife Danay Rodriguez, 53. They have three children: David A. Rodriguez, 35; Juan F. Rodriguez, 29 and Victoria Rodriguez, 26.
Q: Where are you from, and what is your back- ground?
A: I was born in Matanzas, Cuba and came to the United States in 1972. I joined the U.S. Army in 1982 and spent three years there. Then I started working for Florida Power and Light until 1997, when I became a police officer for Miami-Dade County.
Q: What do you most like about Miami Lakes?
A: The citizens are very helpful when I’m doing my job. When I first came to Miami Lakes, I was a road officer and I started attending homeowner association meetings as part of my job.
The residents showed me what the HOAs and Miami Lakes were all about. As a learning experience, they assisted me every time I attended the meetings. Everyone I met was helpful.
Q: What do you dislike about the town?
A: The traffic.
Q: What are the responsibilities as a police officer for the town of Miami Lakes, and what do you hope to accomplish?
A: My responsibilities as
a police officer are enforcing federal, state and local laws, assisting with crime prevention programs, making sure students are dropped off and picked up safely at school and traffic enforcement.
I am also the Sergeant at Arms at Miami Lakes town council meetings and part of the town’s police bike patrol.
I handle complaints. I’m also a member of the Miami Lakes Youth Activities Task Force.
Q: What is your biggest accomplishment, whether in your personal life or career?
A: My biggest accomplishment is that all three of my children graduated from a university.
Q: What would you rather be doing/do you have a fantasy career?
A: My fantasy career would be a veterinarian. I always wanted to be a veterinarian when I was kid, but I didn’t have enough money to attend college. I love animals because my father worked on a farm and l tagged along with him occasionally. The farm had pigs, chickens and horses.
Q: What are you reading or what podcasts are you listening to?
A: I read the Bible on a regular basis. I do not listen to podcasts.
Q: What have you binge- watched on TV?
A: “WandaVision” and “The Mandalorian.”
Q: Where did you last travel to on a vacation?
A: A cruise to the Caribbean.