Also in this issue: - The Spectrum Magazine

From Basketballs to Badges:Riva
R edwood City police Officers Diana Villegas
(left) and Jessica Gray (right) are the best of
friends — but they didn’t start out that way. It’s
the kind of story that, looking back, they can
laugh about. But at that time, it would have been
hard to imagine them ending up as close as they
are now.
Years ago, when both women were playing high
school basketball, they met on the court as opponents,
little love lost between them. Villegas went
“You need to pick on someone your
own size.”
to Burlingame High School and Gray to Woodside.
Villegas was in the class of ’95, a year ahead
of Gray. After one of their games, Gray entered a
verbal confrontation with one of Villegas’ friends.
“I said, ‘You need to pick on someone your own
size,’” Villegas recalled with a smile. “And [Gray]
said, ‘Then I’ll pick on you!’” she laughed.
At 6 feet tall, Villegas still comes in just shy
of Gray’s 6 feet 1 inch, but they were very much
“the same size” — or close to it. In this confrontation,
people had to intercede to break up the pair,
and they maintained a distinct dislike for each
other for some time thereafter — hardly an auspicious
beginning to what would turn out to be a
great friendship!
For Villegas, basketball was a means to an end.
She attended college on a basketball scholarship,
her end goal always being the police force. “We’re
very different,” Villegas said. “I always knew I
wanted to be a police officer. My cousin, Steve
Penny, was a police officer here for 25 years, and I
wanted to follow his footsteps. Six months after I
graduated from college, I was a police officer.”
Gray, however, continued in basketball much
longer, traveling the world to play on professional
teams. It wasn’t until returning from playing
overseas that she encountered Villegas again
— and followed her former rival onto the police
force. Villegas took Gray under her wing during
her training, and the seeds of friendship were
planted.
Villegas is the high school resource officer at
Sequoia. The resource officer is on scene to handle
any problems at the school. If a fight breaks
out on campus, Villegas is already there. She also
works with intervention programs and youth education
programs. “Ever since I was hired, that’s
what I wanted to do,” she said. Before she could
take on that post, though, she had to earn valuable
field experience. “I started so young,” Villegas
said. “Back in the day, they hired officers 21, 22.
They don’t do that anymore.”
When I spoke with Villegas, her enthusiasm for
the job was clearly evident, not only through her
voice but also on her face and in her eyes. It’s refreshing
to see someone with such a joie de vivre
for what she does, who is dedicated and truly happy
where she is. “All the goals I’ve ever wanted
in my life — I wanted to be a cop, I wanted to be
a resource officer, I wanted a basketball scholarship
— for me, life is perfect,” she said. It’s easy
to see why she’s excelled. Not only does she love
what she does, she has a determination to do the
job right. She’s also served as a tactics instructor
and continues to coach youth basketball. “I coach
little guys,” she said, “usually sixth to seventh
grade. For some reason, they really pick things up
at that age.”
While Villegas was on a fast-track, high-focus
career path, Gray traveled more, seeing the
world and exploring after college. It’s a contrast
between the two women, one of many, that
highlights the differences between them. Villegas