The newest member of the Granby Police Department comes from a world away, but he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
Newly sworn in Officer David Sofer was born in Russia and moved to Israel when he was six. He served for three years in the Israeli Defense Forces before enlisting in the Israel Police and working as a captain detective for eight years.
While it’s been a big jump coming to the United States, Sofer said he has enjoyed the change.
“I would say it’s different,” Sofer said. “The scenery is
obviously different. The mentality and everything is different, but good.”
Before moving to the US, Sofer and his wife, Alona Sofer were living in Olesh, Israel, a town he described as the size of Granby, though less isolated. About two years ago, he and Alona moved to Kansas.
“Because my wife was born in the US, we had the option to go
and try and live the American dream, corny as it sounds,” Sofer said.
The couple decided they wanted to move to Colorado after visiting it a few times on vacation. They were looking for small, rural towns when they came across Granby.
Sofer was chosen and sponsored by the Granby PD to attend
the police academy in July. He and his wife moved to Granby six months ago and
he officially began his job two weeks ago.
Granby Police Department
Sofer said his time in the Israeli police saw politically charged circumstances and often dealt with gangs. One of the biggest changes he has found in America is Granby’s attitude toward policing.
“The community here is amazing by the way they embrace the
police here,” Sofer said. “You feel like you’re part of the community. You
actually feel welcome. It’s a good surprise for me.”
Of course, adjusting to America was not always easy. Neither Sofer nor his wife has any family in the country. He described the financial, lingual and cultural struggles that he still faces from time to time.
“US and Israel are not alike,” Sofer said. “Different
cultures, different people, people see things different. Once again, it’s not
good or bad. It’s just different. We are trying to do our best to learn as fast
as we can, so we can feel comfortable here. I think we did a pretty good job in
two years.”
Moving to Granby was a choice that the couple made. Sofer said he would not have bought a house and gone through the police academy if he wanted to be anywhere else. Being a part of and contributing to his community matters a lot to the new officer.
“For me, to be part of this country, I felt like I had to
serve,” Sofer said. “And there is no other way for me to ever feel comfortable
living out of this country without doing some sort of service.”
Sofer’s wife works in town and also performs as a singer in the county. They have two rescue dogs, Fender and Gibson. The couple often rescued and rehomed dogs in Israel, which is how they ended up with one of their pets.
“(My wife) found this puppy on the highway — stopped traffic,” Sofer said. “She picked him up and we tried to find a home for him for like a week. After a week it was done. For us, in 72 hours you’d usually find a home for the dog. This time, we couldn’t find a home for it. I guess it was just destiny.”
In their free time, Sofer and his wife hike as much as
possible with their dogs. Sofer also plays guitar and helps Alona to write
songs.
“We love the place, we really love the place,” Sofer said. “We
love the community. The scenery is just amazing. We are definitely here to
stay. Hopefully, we’re going to raise our kids here. I hope to be beneficial to
the community.”