Mainland Local 77
raises the roof for late officer
When Mainland Local 77 lost a valued
member and blue brother from Egg Har-
bor Township Police Department to cancer
in May, members decided to rally together
to deliver an uplifting surprise to the fami-
ly. Lieutenant Dave Algeri was the ultimate
public servant, not only as a law enforce-
ment officer for nearly 20 years, but also as a
volunteer within his community for multiple
youth sports including baseball, football and
the Police Athletic League.
“He was involved in everything,” noted
Detective Jeff Lancaster, who worked with
Algeri in the Egg Harbor Township Police De-
partment. “He was one of those guys if you
had a question, you could go to and you’d get
an answer.”
To continue his legacy of helping oth-
ers, Lancaster and other Local 77 members
decided to enter Algeri’s family in the East
Coast Roofing and Siding’s annual roof give-
away contest. Egg Harbor Township entered
an application to the company in memory
of the husband and father who had a list of
household repairs he wanted to complete
for his family.
“He had a bucket list of things that he
needed to get done, and this was just one of
the things that fell short,” Lancaster stated.
The East Coast Roofing company select-
ed Local 77’s application without hesitation,
and on Dec. 8, a crowd of officers, home re-
pair workers and local businesses surprised
the Algeri family by showing up at their
doorstep to unveil the reward.
With the help of Local 77 and a local busi-
ness eager to step up for a man known to
give back to the community, the Algeri fami-
ly would have a new roof, gutters and interi-
or painting complete by Christmas.
“I take pride in getting it done for him,”
shared Lancaster at the surprise visit. “I’m
like a kid on Christmas right now — this is
like Christmas morning for me.” d
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■ FEBRUARY 2018 63