THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, April 14, 2023 ~ The Advocate Asks ~ Page 3 Sgt. Stephen Rappa and Saugus Police Lt. Anthony LoPresti talk about their goals to run in this year’s Boston Marathon with the MBTA Police in 1996 and transferred to the Saugus Police Department in 2000. He has 27 years combined service in law enforcement and is in his 14th year as a Saugus Police lieutenant. He worked previously for nine years with the K-9 Unit. He has been a Saugus representative on the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council for 10 years. He moved to Saugus around Editor’s Note: For this week, we sat down with Sgt. Stephen Rappa and Lt. Anthony LoPresti – two commanding offi cers who are among the fi ve members of the Saugus Police Department who are registered to run in the 127th Boston Marathon, which is set Monday (April 17), Patriots’ Day, April 17. These are the last in a series of interviews with each of the Saugus Police marathon runners that will be published in The Saugus Advocate, leading up to Patriots’ Day weekend. We will highlight each runner’s marathon running background, how they prepare for the grueling 26.2 mile course that will draw a fi eld of 30,000 runners from all over the world, their motivation to run a marathon and the charity they are running for. Sgt. Rappa, 37, is a 2004 graduate of St. John’s Prep High School in Danvers, where he played hockey. He grew up in Saugus, where he has lived all of his life. He enlisted in 2008 as a United States Navy Seabee, and he was discharged as a Petty Offi cer Second Class. Rappa received his bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Southern New Hampshire University in 2015. He graduated with a 3.7 Grade Point Average with a focus on Terrorism and Homeland Security. He received his master’s in Criminal Justice in 2016 from Southern New Hampshire University. He is married to Elizabeth Rappa, and they have two children, Christopher and Alexandria. An 11-year veteran of the Saugus Police Department, he is a patrol supervisor for the day shift division. Sgt. Rappa will be running in his fi rst Boston Marathon and fi rst marathon race. Lt. LoPresti, 53, grew up in Lynn and studied at Lynn English High School before enlisting in the U.S. Marines when he was 17 years old. He served for four years (1987-91), and was discharged honorably as a corporal. He is a Persian Gulf War Veteran, having served in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He has received numerous military commendations and medals, including the Good Conduct Medal. LoPresti received his bachelor of science degree in Law Enforcement from Western New England College. He began as a transit police offi cer 1998, where he raised his family. He and his wife Caroline LoPresti, have been married for 30 years. They have three grownup children: two daughters – Hannah LoPresti and Isabella LoPresti, who are both nurses – and a son, Anthony J. LoPresti, Jr., who received an engineering degree from the University of New Hampshire and works in construction management with PMA Consultants. Lt. LoPresti, a veteran member of the Saugus Annual Town Meeting representing Precinct 8, will be running in his second Boston Marathon – four years after his fi rst one (2019). Highlights of this week’s interviews follow. Interview with Sgt. Stephen Rappa Q: How did you get involved in Marathon running? A: It was just something I wanted to try. Q: And why Boston? A: I always wanted to run the Boston Marathon; it was always a bucket list item for me. Q: When did you start running? A: I started running about 15 years ago when I went into the military. Q: How long have you been running? Why do you run? What do you get out of it? 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