The Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force (HKAPF) comprises 3 200 members from all walks of life, with many unsung geniuses and talents yet to be discovered. In his 40s, Kelvin joined the HKAPF in late March this year. Although he just started to walk the beat, he has already walked a long way in his own field – Kelvin is a professor in the Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology of the School of Clinical Medicine at the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKU Med).

Joining the Force has always been on Kelvin’s bucket list since he was an undergraduate. For various reasons, however, he made other pursuits over the last two decades. Last year, as a dormitory warden at HKU, he assisted HKAPF to recruit new members on campus. With the encouragement of his wife and HKAPF officers on the spot, Kelvin decided to make application himself, with the hope to realise his dream.

His successful application meant that he had to receive the 370-hour foundation training before becoming an HKAPF officer. Under normal circumstances, it is difficult for Kelvin to take part in the training as he is always abroad on business. But under the influence of the epidemic back then, outbound travels were suspended. This had in fact cleared the obstacle on his way to join HKAPF.

Despite the change in his role from a professor to a recruit, Kelvin’s spirit of striving for better outcome never diminishes. Take shooting as an example. He felt there was much room for improvement even though his grades were sufficiently good. So he kept seeking advice from instructors and fellow classmates who had better performance. The accuracy of his shooting was further improved. At last, he graduated with the best grades in his class and won the Silver Whistle Award.

Kelvin was assigned to the Patrol Sub-unit of the Central District after passing-out. He already succeeded in making an arrest while on beat for the second day. When he was patrolling at the junction of Wellington Street and D'Aguilar Street that evening, there came a report that a taxi was criminally damaged and the driver was beaten. At that very moment, he saw a man about 30 years old running towards him. Being a HKU Med professor, Kelvin instantly spotted the wounds on the man’s hands, and deduced promptly that the man was related to the taxi vandalism case. After interrogation, the man admitted that he had been involved in the case, and Kelvin made the arrest immediately. The entire process is still vivid in his mind. “I couldn't calm myself down for a long time after going off beat that day. I was so excited that no sooner had I arrived home early in the morning than I woke my wife up and shared with her my experience in applying what I had learned in law enforcement.”

Although his days as an HKAPF officer are still short, Kelvin already feels deeply about his duty. He feels like experiencing a second life when he is on beat as an HKAPF officer. He can get in touch with all walks of life across the social strata and broaden his horizon, which is a truly invaluable experience. Therefore, he appeals to members of the public who aspire to serve the community to join HKAPF, taking an important step in assisting regular police officers to safeguard Hong Kong.