Left to right: Taunton High School Athletic Director Mark Ottavianelli, Superintendent John Cabral and John Deere Associate Austin Walther stand with donated face shields. (Photo courtesy Taunton Police Department) 
Taunton High School Athletic Director Mark Ottavianelli (left) and Superintendent John Cabral assisted in the delivery of face shields. (Photo courtesy Taunton Police Department) 
Left to right: Patrolman Leonardo Almeida , John Deere Associate Austin Walther and Patrolman George Lozado with the face shields John Deere donated to the Taunton Police Department to use while fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo Courtesy Taunton Police Department) 
Superintendent John Cabral (left) and Patrolman Bryant Corey stand with the face shields that were delivered early this morning by a John Deere associate. (Photo courtesy Taunton Police Department)
TAUNTON — Chief Edward J. Walsh is pleased to announce that the Taunton Police Department received a donation of face shields from John Deere today.
John Deere employees produced and donated 500 face shields for Taunton Police officers to use while serving during the COVID-19 pandemic. Austin Walther, Territory Customer Support Manager of the Eastern Region, delivered the face shields to the Taunton Police Department early this morning.
The donation of face shields to the Taunton Police Department was facilitated by Taunton High School Athletic Director Mark Ottavianelli, who was recently the Massachusetts nominee for the 2020 National Interscholastic Athletic Administration Association Distinguished Service Award.
Director Ottavianelli’s brother, David Ottavianelli, is the Director of Strategic Projects-Labor Relations for John Deere in Moline, Illinois. Together they were able to coordinate the production and donation of the face shields to the Taunton Police Department.
“We would like to thank Mark and David Ottavianelli for their dedication to the safety of our officers and our community,” said Chief Walsh. “We would especially like to commend and thank John Deere for taking an innovative approach to their business model during these unprecedented times to give back to communities and help with our fight against COVID-19. Lastly, we would like to thank Taunton Schools Superintendent John Cabral for his continuous support and for the cooperative relationship he has fostered between the police department and schools.”
The donation will be issued to personnel as needed as the COVID-19 situation continues to develop.
John Deere, in collaboration with the United Auto Workers (UAW), the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, is producing protective face shields at John Deere Seeding Group in Moline, Illinois to assist in the fight against COVID-19.
###