Our Leadership

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Board of Directors

Chief Jeff Peeler
Florida Highway Patrol Auxiliary

President, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Jeff has served 40 years with the Florida Highway Patrol Auxiliary which has 240+ members, and has served at all ranks including Trooper, Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain, Major and currently as Chief. He is a member of the State Staff as Northern Region Chief overseeing field operations for Troops A, B, C, G and H and involved in all areas of policing including patrolling, recruiting, training, financials, details, committees, and more. He has volunteered 2000 or more hours each of the last ten years since retiring from Publix Supermarkets after 38 years (31 years in management). He logged over 32,600 miles patrolled on Florida highways last year. Chief Peeler was nominated for and selected as Auxiliary of the Year in 2013. He is a member of the National Sheriff’s Association (NSA), and serves as an active member and speaker at the national summer NSA conferences in the VLEOA Reserve Policing Roundtable. He is a member of the Blue Knights International Motorcycle Club, and a six-year committee member of the Central Florida annual Blue Knights Law Ride to help raise funds for officers injured or killed in the line of duty. He is also a founding member of the VLEOA and proud supporter since 2009, having attended every VLEOA annual training conference since inception.

Harold Wax, CPP, PCI, CFCI, CTIO

Reserve Police Officer - Lafayette (LA) Police Department

Auxiliary Sergeant - Ontario Provincial Police

1st Vice President and Membership Chair, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Harold Wax began his volunteer law enforcement career as an Auxiliary Police Constable in Ontario, Canada with the Ontario Provincial Police in 1996 and has served in various roles including Unit Commander, Regional Sergeant Major, and Inspector; and is currently assigned as an Auxiliary Sergeant to the Highway Safety Division. Harold also serves as a commissioned peace officer in the United States, having previously served as a Reserve Deputy Marshal with the Lafayette (Louisiana) City Marshal's Office, and now serves with the Lafayette Police Department as a Reserve Police Officer. In his day job, Harold works for PepsiCo as Global Security Director. In this role, Harold leads corporate security and crisis management activities for PepsiCo Beverages and PepsiCo Foods (Frito Lay/Quaker) in Canada and supports North American security operations. Harold holds Board Certifications in Security Management as well as Investigations with the American Society for Industrial Security. Harold is also a Board Certified Financial Crimes Investigator and is a Certified Counter-Terrorism Information Officer. Harold holds membership in good standing with ASIS, ACFE, IAFCI, IACP, CACP, NSA, and is currently the Sgt-at-Arms of the Private Security Liaison Committee of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. In 2008 Harold was named Financial Institution Investigator of the Year by the Central Canada Chapter of the IAFCI. In 2018, Harold was awarded the Province of Ontario Auxiliary Policing Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct. In 2019, Harold was awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers by the Governor General of Canada. In 2020, Harold was named the Security Director of the Year by Canadian Security Magazine. In 2021, Harold was ranked #4 globally by IFSEC on the Security & Fire Executive Global Influencer List. Harold currently serves as 1st Vice President of the Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance (VLEOA).

Adam Dobrin, Ph.D., CVPL

Reserve Deputy, St. Lucie County (FL) Sheriff’s Office

2nd Vice President, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Dr. Adam Dobrin is an Associate Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University. Dr. Dobrin has years of non-profit leadership experience, including co-founding and holding leadership positions in two international health-care policy entities. Through these affiliations he presented his research at the US Capitol for the Congressional Briefing on Juvenile Justice and later the Congressional Briefing Predicting and Preventing Homicide and Other Violence. Dr. Dobrin was an Academic Fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy, where part of his Fellowship involved overseas travel for an intensive immersion in the world of terrorism, and the ways the political, diplomatic, military, intelligence, and criminal justice systems respond to or prevent it. More recently, he traveled to the Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center at New Mexico Tech to become a certified instructor on the prevention and response to suicide bombing incidents. Shifting his research trajectory and personal interests, Dr. Dobrin is currently exploring various issues relating to volunteer policing. In both academic and professional settings, he has published numerous articles and presented at conferences on volunteer policing topics. Dr. Dobrin won his University’s first Presidential Award for Outstanding Faculty-Led Community Engagement for Engaged Service in 2017 for his volunteer work as a road patrol deputy with his local sheriff’s office’s reserve unit. He is also a Certified Volunteer Policing Leader (CVPL).

Captain Marc Spigel
Framingham MA Auxiliary Police

Co-Founder & Treasurer, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Marc began his interest in law enforcement as a Newton Police Explorer in 1972. He first volunteered as an auxiliary officer for the Newton (Massachusetts) Police in 1979, and later moved to become a Framingham Police Auxiliary officer in 1985. With the Framingham Auxiliary Police, Marc was promoted to Sergeant in 1989, Lieutenant in 1993 and took command of the unit as Captain in 1998. Marc also joined the Wellfleet Police Department in 2015 as a Seasonal Officer. Marc was a co-founder of the Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance in 2009 and the Massachusetts Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Association in 2011, and is a member of the Massachusetts Citizen Corps Council. Marc was selected in 2011 by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to be the State Advocate for Massachusetts police volunteers. Marc earned his Bachelors degree in Business Administration from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1979. He earned his Certified Public Accountant designation in 1982 and works as a financial consultant for a large regional public accounting firm.

Carolyn Parker
Assistant Commandant (ret), Royal Cayman Islands Special Constabulary

Board Secretary, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Carolyn's policing career began with the Randall County Sheriff' Office in Texas, where she worked narcotics. She later attended the Amarillo Police Academy and became a certified Texas Peace Officer and worked win the juvenile division of the Amarillo Police Department. After relocating to the Cayman Islands, she joined the Royal Cayman Islands Special Constabulary and worked continuously to improve the organization's relationship with the RCI Police Service. She moved up the ranks from Special Constable to Assistant Commandant, the rank she retired with in 2015. During her service she worked with the training department on the process of all special constable applicants in 2008, including one class graduation in Cayman Brac; one of the three Cayman Islands. She has been presented with the "Police Colonial Long Service Medal" and the "Queen's Jubilee Medal" during her service. She has served as a member of the VLEOA since its inception, and has represented the RCIPS Special Constabulary in conferences in the Bahamas, Victoria (Canada), St. Croix, Orlando (Florida), Avon Park (Florida), Tampa (Florida), Lafayette (Louisiana), Manchester (UK), and Toronto (Canada). She is also a member of the Texas Narcotics Officer Association.

Ross Wolf Orange County Sheriff Policing police

Reserve Chief Deputy Ross Wolf, Ed.D., M.P.A., CHPP, CVPL

Orange County (FL) Sheriff's Office

Immediate Past President and Board Member, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Dr. Ross Wolf currently serves as Reserve Chief Deputy with the Orange County (Florida) Sheriff’s Office, and as Associate Provost and Professor at the University of Central Florida. Ross has over 30 years of experience as a full-time and reserve deputy, and has served in patrol, as a Field Training Officer, specialized patrol, and criminal investigations as a detective. He was appointed to and serves on the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Police Administration Committee, and on the National Sheriffs' Association (NSA) Outreach Committee and Reserve Law Enforcement Subcommittee. He is a Certified Homeland Protection Professional (CHPP), Certified Volunteer Policing Leader (CVPL), and has authored over sixty refereed articles, professional articles, book chapters, and books on police interviewing, police administration and management, reserve and volunteer policing, police use of force, tourism policing, and international policing. In addition to his work with police agencies throughout the United States, he has worked with the police in the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, Russia, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, and Singapore. In addition to other law enforcement awards, he has received the Orange County Sheriff's Office Administrative Excellence Award, Sheriff's Citation, and Distinguished Service Medal. He has been presented with the United States "Daily Point of Light" Award, the National Sheriffs' Association "Medal of Merit" Award, the "J. Edgar Hoover Memorial Gold Medal for Distinguished Public Service" from the American Police Hall of Fame, and the US Presidential "Lifetime Call to Service” Award for his work with volunteer and reserve policing.

Dr. Matthew Yap, CVPL
Volunteer Special Constabulary, Singapore Police Force and Army Reserves
International Area Director and Board Member, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Dr. Matthew Yap is an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and International Maritime Organization (IMO) consultant, and an adjunct faculty member at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). Matthew has been a volunteer special constabulary rank and file officer in the Singapore Police Force since 2005, and is currently Deputy Superintendent of Police heading the Police Operations Command Center (Emergency hotline) volunteer unit. He is a certified Emergency Response Team (ERT) and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). Matthew started his career in active military service as a commissioned army officer in 1992 and continues to serve today as a Senior Lieutenant Colonel in the Division Artillery as Strike Brigade Chief of Staff (Reserves). Matthew completed a rotation in United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), in Tampa, Florida for Operation Iraqi Freedom, and also volunteered in the Ministry of Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Operation Center during the national fight against COVID-19. Matthew attended the Singapore Police Command and Staff Course in Perth, Australia and the Singapore Armed Forces Command and Staff course in Singapore. After active duty service in 2005, Matthew was also the Deputy Commander of the Airport Auxiliary Police Force until 2007. Matthew is a Certified Volunteer Policing Leader (CVPL) and published his first book, "Sun Tzu, The Art of War, 30 Ways to Transform," with stories from his police volunteer work, army reserves and business transformation during COVID.

Auxiliary Superintendent Frank Fernandes
Toronto Police Service

Board Member, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

An Auxiliary Police Officer with the Toronto Police Service (formerly, Metropolitan Toronto Police Force) since 1971, Frank currently holds the rank of Auxiliary Superintendent, the highest active rank for Auxiliary Members of the Service. Former Volunteer Firefighter, past President of the Rotary Club of Vaughan; former Chair of the Blue Knights Toy Ride Committee; Co-Founder of the Motorcycle Ride for the Prevention of Child Abuse; Founder of the Toronto Auxiliary Police Toy Drive; Patron of the Alliance of Guyanese Canadian Organizations; and past Chair of St. John Ambulance Toronto Branch. He is a recipient of numerous awards and honours, including the Ontario Auxiliary Police Medal, both the Queen Elizabeth II Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals, Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship, St. John Ambulance Long Service Medal; the Order of St. John Medal; the Paul Harris Fellowship Award; and the Province of Ontario’s highest honour, the Order of Ontario. Frank is also an active member of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police and the International Police Association, Member of the Kentucky colonels commission, and in the business world is the President of Quality Liquid Packaging in Toronto.

Michael D. Reilly, DNP, MSN, APRN, NP-C, EMT-P, CVPL
Auxiliary Lieutenant – Florida Highway Patrol Auxiliary
Board Member, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Dr. Michael Reilly started his law enforcement career as an Auxiliary State Trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) in 2011. He has held positions as lead recruiter, lead background investigator, is currently a member of the Special Response Team (SRT), and currently holds the rank of Lieutenant and unit commander for Troop B. He has received numerous accolades which include five-time recipient of the statewide Auxiliary Trooper of the Quarter, Auxiliary Trooper of the Year, and distinguished service award among many other recognitions. Has been an active member with VLEOA since 2018 and enjoys attending the annual training conferences. Dr. Reilly is a Board-Certified Family Nurse Practitioner, Autonomous Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) who practices as a primary/urgent care provider at a large practice in central Florida. He is also an Adjunct Professor with Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) where he teaches graduate level advanced pathophysiology, advanced pharmacology and advanced physical assessment. Dr. Reilly has earned his Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), and his Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) magna cum laude all from Florida Atlantic
University (FAU). In addition to his nursing credentials, he is currently a volunteer paramedic and certified firefighter with Marion County Fire Rescue. In his spare time, he is a private pilot spending time with his wife and family and being involved in his church activities. Dr. Reilly has dedicated his adult life servicing his community. Dr. Reilly is affectionally known by many as “Doctor Trooper”

Phaik Kin Cheah, Ph.D.
Lance Corporal, Royal Malaysia Police Volunteer Reserve
Associate Professor, Faculty of Arts and Social Science, UniversitiTunku Abdul Rahman

Board Member, Volunteer Law Enforcement Officer Alliance

Dr. Phaik Kin Cheah is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Arts and Social Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia. She is also a Visiting Associate Professor at the University of Central Florida, USA. She holds a PhD and a Master of Arts in Communication from Universiti Sains Malaysia, and a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in English Language from Universiti Putra Malaysia. She has been serving as an officer in the Royal Malaysia Police Volunteer Reserve since 2014. Her research area is in the broad areas of volunteer policing and crime prevention.