Upper Gwynedd Police Sergeant Harrison Colcher, left, listens as his son Jackson received his oath from district Judge Suzan Leonard on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Upper Gwynedd Police Department)
Annual awards presented as department honors father-son duo
The newest member of the Upper Gwynedd Police Department brings a familiar name to the department.
Township officials welcomed new officer Jackson Colcher to the department on Monday night, as he received his oath alongside his father and now-colleague, police Sergeant Harrison Colcher.
“Tonight, we welcome him officially to our force in Upper Gwynedd Township,” said commissioner Denise Hull.
Jackson graduated from North Penn High School in 2019, then attended Montgomery County Community College and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 2021, where he earned a promotion to the rank of sergeant and ended his tour of duty last July, according to a bio read by Hull during the commissioners meeting on Jan. 12.
Jackson was hired as a cadet by the township last summer, then attended the Allentown Police Academy and graduated in December, Hull read, as Jackson swore his oath alongside Harrison, a member of the department since 2002 who was promoted to sergeant in 2023.
“I’ve sworn in many of the Upper Gwynedd Police Department already, I swore you in when you became a sergeant, and now to swear in your son, it’s quite an honor,” said district Judge Suzan Leonard before administering the oath.
In a Facebook post marking the new hire, the department called the ceremony “a truly special and proud moment for the Colcher family and our department.”
Annual awards
Prior to introducing the new hire, police Chief David Duffy and Deputy Chief Ted Caiola presented the department’s annual awards for 2025, detailing a series of accomplishments over the prior year. First honored were Officer Brant Whisler and Detective Jonathan Gill, both honored for “proficiency and expertise as range instructors,” Duffy said, administering training and teaching tactics to fellow officers since 2016.
Officer Abdenour Fahem was the next honored, for leading the department in DUI arrests over the past year, and noted a similarity with the UGPD’s first-ever arrest, recently commemorated on the department’s social media pages as they mark their 75th year of service.
“Today, our first arrest in the department, case number one, is posted up there, and it was a DUI, the first arrest made by the police department. It was a one-vehicle crash in front of the police station, so probably a good response time,” Duffy said.
As one of two fulltime traffic safety officers, the chief noted, Fahem has topped the department in DUI arrests for three straight years, with his most recent such arrest just hours before the meeting: “He got the first DUI arrest of the year, and his most recent arrest was at 12:24 p.m. today, for a DUI,” Duffy said, before presenting Fahem with his recognition.
Next, the annual Top Gun award, to the officer who scores highest in firearms training: “We tally scores for marksmanship throughout the year, and it’s not just for simple target shooting, or highest score: it involves timed drills, tactics, movement, it’s pretty difficult. The Top Gun this year: Sergeant Harrison Colcher.”
Next came a group commendation, with departmental community service medals going to township Fire Marshal Conor McCann, Whisler, and John Detweiler, assistant chief of Hatfield-based VMSC EMS ambulance corps, recognized for implementing the ‘Stop the Bleed’ initiative that pre-positions medical equipment at locations across the township.
“The project involves having trauma kits placed in public areas, as well as training for first responders and the public. Properly used, the kit can address blood loss within three to five minutes, which is typically prior to emergency medical treatment by first responders,” Duffy said. The program has already been started at several municipal buildings and one school in the township, and the team is working to add it at several more schools shortly.
Last but far from least, Caiola presented the Officer of the Year award, voted by peer officers to a colleague nominated for his strong relationships with the community, training, case prep, and “overall professionalism, and for investigating a fatal accident involving a bicyclist on Allentown Road last summer.
“He spent many hours, did incredible work, and I’m very proud to honor Andrew Profit as the Officer of the Year,” Caiola said.
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