Kier Simmons (left) of Andover was approved unanimously by the Board of Selectmen on Dec. 1 as a fulltime probationary police officer for Rumford. The vote came following the recommendation of Police Chief Tony Milligan (right). Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times

RUMFORD — Kier Simmons of Andover was approved unanimously by the Board of Selectmen on Dec. 1 as a fulltime probationary police officer for Rumford.
That vote at their Dec. 1 meeting came at the recommendation of Police Chief Tony Milligan, who added that the vote is contingent on Simmons passing, to Milligan’s satisfaction, the psychological evaluation.
He said separate interviews by Captain Dan Garbarini and himself with Simmons “has left us both with the impression, without hesistation, that his outstanding work ethic, compassion for people, cool head and education background that Kier Simmons would make a very fine addition to our force.”
Milligan, who was present with Simmons, told the board his department is authorized for 15 fulltime positions.
Prior to the vote, the department had four fulltime position vacancies — two patrol spots, a utility position and one task force assignment position.
“Recently, we’ve lost fulltime probationary officer Amos Abbott back in September due to resignation, to pursue a new career opportunity out of state. Last month, we lost fulltime probationary officer Seth Pond, due to his inability to successfully complete our in-training program,” said Milligan.
The chief then went through Simmons’ history.
Milligan said Simmons, 40, was born in Rumford, graduated from Telstar Regional High School, and has lived most of his life in Andover, where he has been married for 12 years to his wife, Natalie, and they have two children.
In 2005, Simmons earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Community Health Education at the University of Maine at Farmington.
From 2004-2008, he worked as a health educator in Maine, specializing in motivational interviewing and positive behavioral therapy.
From 2008-2016, Simmons worked as a program manager for a New York-based company, responsible for writing, editing and sales of correctional-based behavioral change resources for things like substance abuse, critical thinking, game activity, etc.
From 2016 to present, he was working at his family’s transportation business at Home Heating Fuels in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, where he is a supervisor.
Milligan said Simmons has always had a desire to help people and wanted to have a more fulfilling career. After discussing it with his life, they decided pursuing a career in law enforcement was the right path for him to take.
He said Simmons reached out to the Maine Criminal Justice Academy to figure out what steps he needed to take to become a police officer for the agency he had his sights on, and that was the Rumford Police Department.
Simmons took advantage of the department’s ride along program and saw first hand what Rumford Police Officers do on a daily basis, and was intrigued.
Simmons enrolled himself in and successfully completed the alert test, medical and physical fitness assessments, polygraph assessment, and Phases 1 and 2 training programs at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy.
He has also subjected to a comprehensive background investigation, with no findings of concern for disqualification.
Simmons final step of predeployment is a psychological evalulation.