HFC welcomes Rafael Rivera, Jr., whose varied career started on 9/11

HFC Campus Safety Associate Rafael Rivera, Jr. is one of the new faces at the College who can often be seen riding his bike around the main campus, looking for ways he can support the community.

“I’m part of the bike patrol here at HFC,” said Rivera. “I patrol the campus, provide help where needed, work dispatch, and complete reports for Campus Safety. I enjoy working the afternoon shift from 3:00 to 11:00 p.m. I just started in April.”

Rivera reports to HFC Campus Safety Supervisor Luke Cosenza.

“Rafael is very personable and an easygoing person who likes to interact with the HFC community and is fast becoming a very valuable member of the HFC Campus Safety Team,” said Cosenza.

First day in law enforcement was September 11, 2001

The second of five children and the eldest son, Rivera was born and raised in Chicago. He also spent his summers as a youth in Puerto Rico. He lives in Southfield with Maria, his wife of 38 years. They have three adult children.

Rivera is fluent in Spanish and American Sign Language. A graduate of Foreman High School in Chicago, he earned his Licensed Private Security Police Officers certification through Schoolcraft College and his Law Enforcement Bicycle Association certification through Macomb Community College. He also underwent radiological training with the Department of Energy in Oak Ridge, TN, one of the original sites of the Manhattan Project, where he learned how to dispose of a dirty bomb (a conventional explosive combined with radioactive elements).

Rivera was a police officer for Henry Ford Health for 25 years. His first day at HFH – and his first day in law enforcement – was September 11, 2001.

“I was in orientation at HFH,” he recalled. “My cousin was a 911 dispatcher in New York City and was giving me firsthand information about what was happening there. There was so much uncertainty. We were sent home and finished orientation the next day. It was a very different world.”

HFC has welcomed him with open arms

Rivera became a field training officer for HFH and initiated HFH’s Honor Guard. He graduated from Alpena Honor Guard Training School in 2013.

“It gave me great pride to start this program and enlist Honor Guard members from our department to learn tasks involving an Honor Guard unit. I helped develop HFH’s Class A traditional dress uniforms for official ceremonies. It was a privilege to serve,” he said.

Rivera retired from HFH as a lieutenant in early 2026. Fellow HFC Campus Safety Associate John Rinaldi, whom he met during his HFH days, recommended that Rivera join the College.

“The HFC community has been so welcoming, starting with the Campus Safety leadership team of Director Karen Schoen, Emergency Manager Michael Ball, and Luke Cosenza. They have demonstrated such great leadership skills. The Campus Safety team that I’ve worked with and have met from other shifts have also made me feel very welcome here. All of them have helped me gain a better knowledge of what’s expected in our day-to-day routines and have shown me a great sense of camaraderie,” he said.

Rivera had been at HFC less than two weeks when his colleagues surprised him with a birthday cake.

“I was really touched by that,” he said. “A great sense of teamwork and support drives our department. There’s a great atmosphere at HFC among both students and employees. I’ve even had the pleasure to meet some members of the Board of Trustees. They’ve introduced themselves to me while I was on bike patrol. Everyone I have come across thus far has treated me like I belong here, which is so nice and heartwarming.”