He's proud to be an American

As a young boy, Tim Kane already knew that he was proud to be an American. Kane began playing hockey as a goalie when he was six years old. Whenever he went with his parents to a hockey store, his pale blue eyes fixated on red, white, and blue equipment. "I was never on a team with those colors," current sophomore Kane said. "But I wanted to look like the American flag."

Growing up in Plymouth, Mass. (a town with the motto "America's Hometown"), Kane was always surrounded by American history. He was also always interested in law enforcement. "Since as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a police officer," he said. "My best friend's father was a police officer. I'd always be over his house and see his dad come home wearing a full cop suit and I was like 'Wow! That's so cool.'"

After extensive research during his junior year of high school at Thayer Academy, Kane decided definitively that he wanted to work for the Secret Service or the FBI. Both his parents are extremely supportive of Kane's choice: "My dad is really proud of me that I'm doing this," Kane said.

The risks associated with such a career, however, are worrisome for his parents. "Both of them are a little scared, especially my mom," Kane said. "It can be a dangerous job, but they would never tell me not to do something; they just want me to be happy."

Kane's father has been influential in the formation of his son's career plan. "My dad fought in Vietnam," Kane said. "He gave up so much to fight for his country, and I look up to him for having so much courage."

Sept. 11 has also been a significant influence for Kane, who lost his 25-year-old sister Jennifer in the tragic events of that day. Jennifer had worked as an accountant on the 100th floor of the tower that was first hit. "After Sept. 11, it made me want to be in the Secret Service even more," Kane said. "I think the event definitely had an impact on the way I look at life. When it happened, I opened up my eyes a lot more."

His sister's tragedy confirmed Kane's decision to dedicate his life to his country. "I want to do my part - whatever I can do, to try to prevent something like this ever happening again," Kane said. "I don't know what I can do single-handedly, but as a group, the Secret Service or the FBI can make sure that they protect America."

In commemoration of his sister, Kane and his family started the Jennifer Kane Memorial Golf Tournament. It is an annual event with 144 golfers, and all proceeds are given to charity. With the money earned through the tournament, Kane and his family set up a scholarship fund called the Jennifer L. Kane Endowed University Scholarship at Villanova University, the college Jennifer attended. The scholarship helps students who possess similar interests and attributes to those of Jennifer.

Besides arranging the golf tournament every summer, Kane works detailing cars at Sullivan Brothers Auto Mall. This summer, however, will be a change: Kane's father, an accountant for the Coast Guard, recently put Kane in contact with a friend from the Secret Service. After extensive interviews and applications, Kane was accepted as an intern for the Secret Service this summer. "This is really my first step," Kane said. "It'll give me experience, and that's one thing that the Secret Service and any of these government agencies look for."

As an intern for Boston's division of the Secret Service, Kane will be working at the Tip-O'Neil Building by the Fleet Center. Although he will have to do typical clerical work, his boss promised him that he will see some action as well. "She [Kane's boss] said she'll give me the opportunity to ride around on certain days with agents to see what they do," Kane said.

In addition to interning with the Secret Service, Kane will be working once a week at the Plymouth Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison. "I'm not really gonna be around the prisoners," Kane said. "It's basically a way to give me another idea about how law enforcement works, mostly behind the scenes stuff."

To explore his interest while in school, Kane plans on taking the limited courses offered at Tufts in the criminology field, such as the ExCollege forensic science course. "At Tufts they don't have a criminology major, which is what I wanted to do," Kane said. "But they [Secret Service] said that you can major in anything."

Aside from his classes, Kane spends his time as a goalie on the Tufts Hockey Team. "It's hard," Kane said. "Hockey takes up a lot of time, but I feel that I do better in school when I'm playing because everything's more structured."

After graduating from Tufts, Kane plans to apply to the Secret Service, which accepts applicants once they're 23 years old. "The background check they're doing on me now is nothing compared to what they will do when I apply after college," Kane said. "They want to make sure I'm not a Communist or want to kill the president or anything like that. They also want to make sure that I'm a good worker and that I'm right for them."

To this end, the Secret Service is talking to Kane's close friends, family, former employers, and even his hockey coach. Despite the fact that they may be receiving a call from a man in a black suit, Kane's roommates support his ambitions: "From the moment I met Tim last year, he's always been talking about working for the government," said sophomore Jared Sevinor, Kane's roommate. "I give him credit for going after his dream."

Will anything deter Kane from achieving that dream? "Yeah, I'd be afraid to die," Kane said. "Who isn't afraid to die? But I'd give my life for my country in a split second."

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