By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
As a young summer cop just starting his law enforcement career in Sea Isle City in 1998, Anthony Garreffi Jr. simply wanted to focus on becoming a good police officer.
But when he was promoted to sergeant in 2007, his career aspirations pivoted and he began thinking of achieving something much higher – becoming Sea Isle’s chief of police one day.
“It was probably when I became sergeant that I knew I could lead people,” he recalled in an interview.
Garreffi, 49, will now lead the entire police department following his appointment as the new chief Thursday amid a packed City Hall ceremony of family members, supporters and fellow law enforcement officials from Cape May County.
Mayor Leonard Desiderio, who administered the oath of office to Garreffi and pinned the chief of police’s gold badge on his lapel, immediately set the bar extremely high for the department’s new leader.
“I expect you to be the best chief ever in the history of our department,” Desiderio told him.
“You got it,” Garreffi immediately responded while accepting the challenge.
Desiderio has often characterized the Sea Isle police department as the “best in the state” and repeated that belief during the swearing-in ceremony.
He also assured Garreffi and the other officers who attended the ceremony – all of them wearing their dress blue uniforms – that the city fully supports the department.
“Remember, we have your back 150 percent,” Desiderio said.
The standing room audience at City Hall’s Council Chambers erupted in applause and cheers after Desiderio pinned the chief’s badge on Garreffi.
“I will be the best chief,” Garreffi said in his remarks.
He added, “We’re going to make this police department better than when I found it.”
While expressing his gratitude to everyone who attended the ceremony, Garreffi singled out Sea Isle’s most recent police chiefs, Tom D’Intino and Tom McQuillen, for all the help and guidance they gave him during his career. D’Intino retired in 2018, while McQuillen’s last official day as chief was Wednesday.
“I’ve got some big shoes to fill, but I know I can do it,” Garreffi said of following in the footsteps of D’Intino and McQuillen.
Garreffi served as the acting chief of police during the transition between D’Intino’s retirement and the appointment of McQuillen as the new chief in 2018.
Back in 1998, Garreffi initially joined the Sea Isle Police Department as a summer officer. He was also a summer cop in 1999. After serving with the Atlantic County Sheriff’s Department for one year, he returned to Sea Isle as a full-time patrolman in 2001.
He climbed the ranks, winning promotion to sergeant in 2007, lieutenant in 2010 and captain in 2014. He was named the department’s Officer of the Year in 2007.
Garreffi was inspired to become a cop by his father, Anthony Garreffi Sr., a retired captain with the Hamilton Township Police Department in Atlantic County. During his remarks at the ceremony, Garreffi thanked his father and mother, Connie, for their support.
Choking back his emotions, Garreffi then turned to his wife, Stephanie, and called her “my rock.”
“I’m the man I am today because of her,” he said, moments before hugging his wife.
The couple’s daughter, Madisyn, 17, and 12-year-old son, Cole, were also present. Their 23-year-old son, A.J., is a student at Virginia Tech University.
As chief of police, Garreffi will oversee all day-to-day public safety operations in the community, including the city’s Division of Emergency Medical Services, Fire Department and Office of Emergency Management.
In an interview after he was sworn in, Garreffi said he is not planning to make any major changes with the police department’s operations.
Sea Isle, which has a year-round population of about 2,100 residents, is crowded with about 50,000 to 70,000 visitors during the busy summer tourism season.
As with other shore towns on the New Jersey coast, Sea Isle has been trying to prevent disruptions during the tourism season by groups of rowdy teenagers and young adults. Underage drinking, foul language, theft and vandalism are among the problems Sea Isle has been dealing with for the past two summers.
In early August, Desiderio outlined plans for Sea Isle to possibly develop its own local laws “to swing the pendulum back” in the police’s favor while dealing with groups of disruptive teens. He said the strategy will be unveiled by the end of the year.
Garreffi said in early August that the police department has been doing “everything we can” to contain the rowdiness.
At the same time, Garreffi also said parents must take more responsibility for their children when they leave the house at night.
