NORMAL, Ill. (WMBD) — Normal police officers are getting a new redesigned patch as part of the agency’s uniform makeover.
The new patches are similar to the old ones, but it has silver and blue trim instead of the old white and gold trim. It also just says “police” instead of the old patches that say “Police Dept,” a post on the Normal Police Department’s Facebook page said.
“While the changes are subtle, they reflect our ongoing mission to continually improve every aspect of what we do — from our appearance to the way we serve and protect the community,” the post said.
The new patch also features a silver star instead of the old gold star, and the eagle’s body and wings are also silver.
Department spokesman Brad Park said that the new patch is part of a push to modernize their look. They’ve had the same uniforms for at least 25 years he said.
The color blue was chosen as it is a universal police color, so they felt it was the best color to use.
He said officers will wear the new blue, while supervisors will wear the same gold ones to differentiate between the ranks.
He said they are also working on updating the uniforms as the old ones were made out of “bulky cotton,” so they are moving to a more “stretchy”, comfortable fit to allow better mobility and comfort for officers.
He said people felt it was time for the department to “refresh” their look.
The post said that the changes will start to take place over the next month.
“You may notice over the next month, Normal PD officers will be sporting a slightly new look — our updated uniforms featuring a blue-and-silver patch design,” it said.
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