SHS First Responders Club nabs first place in felony traffic stop at state contest

Winning first place in the state felony traffic stop competition left some Springtown High School First Responders Club members in a state of shock.

“I know when I first heard it, I started looking around, wondering if it was true,” junior Thomas Gillham said about how he felt when the results were announced. “And I looked back up at the board, and yeah, it was.”

Earlier this month, the club participated in the Texas Public Safety Association’s state conference in Allen, where they captured multiple awards. Gillham, along with Adam Deleon, Bryson Spikes and Skyler Tyree won first place in the felony traffic stop event. Zachary Schlotter earned second place in foot pursuit; Hayley Knight placed third in law enforcement agility; and Dillon Wilson took home third place in 911 call taking.

SHS teachers Larynn Bolyer and Terri Massey serve as advisers to the club.

Knight, a junior, also expressed disbelief at the results of the contest but said she was happy with the outcome. She said she was nervous before competing but described the contest as easy and fun, and she said the support of the instructors is what made the club members successful competitors this year.

This was Knight’s first year in the First Responders Club.

“I’ve learned that you need to be flexible and forgiving,” Knight said about what she’s learned from being in the club. “Not everything goes as planned.”

To get to the state competition, the First Responders Club students participated in the regional competition in March, where all the SHS students competing qualified for state.

After regionals, the felony traffic stop team trained for its competition every week. Spikes, a sophomore, said the law enforcement officers training them would set up scenarios for the students and give them feedback afterward.

Gillham said that going into the felony traffic stop competition was nerve wracking, but because he had competed in that category last year, he didn’t feel as nervous and was more prepared.

Team members reminisced over last year’s competition, which involved a U-Haul van and required them to think on their feet.

 “Some of us weren't prepared for it,” Gillham said about last year’s competition. “And we had to improvise everything.”

The felony traffic stop team had to address an armed robbery in this year’s competition. They were advised to be on the lookout for a truck, which they saw speeding off. The competitors stopped the truck, arrested its occupants and found drugs and weapons in the vehicle.

Spikes pointed out that one of the truck’s occupants was concealed in the bed of the truck, which was covered, and the team had to open the tailgate to find the other occupant.

Communication was a challenging part of the competition, according to Spikes and Deleon, a sophomore. Deleon recalled a frustrating point during the contest when one of his teammates was trying to tell him something and he couldn’t hear them.  

Spikes said they were in a “huge room with multiple cars on. It was difficult to hear each other. Even with yelling, you could barely hear anyone.”

Nevertheless, the felony traffic stop team felt assured after finishing the contest.

“They felt very confident, like they did extremely well,” Bolyer said, recalling how her students came back after their contest. “They pretty much told me that it went really, really, really good.”

Last year, the students competed in felony traffic stop and didn’t place, but made the top 10. Gillham said this year, the team tried to plan for the unexpected. Spikes said the fact that some team members participated in outside training, like Springtown Police Explorer Post 1340, was also helpful.

First Responders Club President Sarah Smith, a senior, said she was “so incredibly proud” of her peers who won at the state contest, even though she didn’t place in her competitive event. She said “everyone’s hard work and their willingness to take critiques from the trainers” helped the club succeed at this year’s competition.

Bolyer also said the students’ success speaks to the hard work and practice time spent.

“I'm just super proud of them,” Bolyer said. “I think that hard work and practice really pays off.”

She added, “I think the kids are getting a head start into careers that they'd like to follow, and all I can do is hope to impart knowledge to the best of my ability, hope they learn something and hope it gives them a leg up in the career field.”

Senior Samantha Morris said though she didn’t place in the state job interview competition, she has been inspired to consider pursuing a career as a jailer. At regionals, she placed first in the job interview competition, in which she was interviewed and tested for a detention officer position. She figures that will be beneficial to include on her resume.

“Coming from a long line of military family, I didn't really want to go down the military route because it’s just like not my strong suit, but I do want to help people,” Morris said. “If I become a jailer, it gives me a chance to talk to (people in jail), and like help them figure out what they need to do in life and stuff like that.”

She added, “Sometimes people just need a stranger to talk to, to work stuff out.”

Morris said the First Responders Club has helped give her confidence, and she praised the club’s advisers for their guidance.

“To me, Ms. B and Ms. Massey are both role models, and so everything that they say, I listen to,” Morris said. “And it definitely helps in life.”

In her three years being a part of the club, Smith said she has learned to speak up for herself and others as well as how important communication is.

“I don’t know what my time in high school would have looked like without this club, and I don’t want to know,” Smith said. “The things I’ve learned from Mrs. Bolyer and Mrs. Massey will stay with me forever. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. This was the best choice made during my high school career.”

To support the SHS First Responders Club, contact Bolyer at lbolyer@springtownisd.net to buy a shirt or donate to the club.