HARVEYS LAKE — This lakeside borough is known for many things — gorgeous mountain views, water fun and now lip-syncing Police Officer Corey Pavinski.
On June 30, Pavinski took the Law Enforcement Lip Sync Challenge on social media and demonstrated his musical side with a four-minute and 20-second video which went viral on Facebook.
“I saw others doing it and figured why not,” the 25-year-old said Friday.
One of his law enforcement colleagues in Larksville recently decided to show off his singing chops as well.
The Law Enforcement Lip Sync Challenge seemed to start with police agencies in Texas in late June and quickly spread from state to state. The goal of the videos is simple — have fun lip-syncing one or more songs to show that the person behind the badge is human.
“I think it was a very nice thing he did,” Harveys Lake Police Chief Charles Musial said, adding the challenge will show the public that police officers have a fun side as well.
Pavinski sought inspiration for his video from friends and family on Facebook. He posted a thread stating he would make a video if he received 100 likes along with song requests.
The outpouring exceeded his expectation and resulted in a lip-sync video comprised of nine songs that included “Mony, Mony” by Billy Idol; “Summer Girls” by Lyte Funkie Ones; and “It’s Raining Men,” by The Weather Girls to name a few.
“I like all kinds of music,” Pavinski said, adding he chose to end his video with Hammerstein and Rodgers’ “So Long, Farewell” from the “Sound of Music” because he liked the “different language” featured.
The video was posted last Saturday and by noon Friday it had over 65,000 views, he said.
When Musial saw the video of his officer, wearing the department’s uniform, sitting in what appears to be a police cruiser singing “Barbie Girl” by Aqua, he laughed.
“I was not aware of it (video) until afterward,” Musial said. “I thought it was appropriate. We call him Comical Corey.”
The video has helped Pavinski connect with some of the children in the borough. Pavinski will soon be working as the school resource officer for Lake-Noxen Elementary upon the completion of his certification later this summer.
Cat statue inspires
But Pavinski is not the only musical cop in Luzerne County.
Larksville Officer Stephen Kofchak Sr. also created a video showcasing his creative side.
On July 4, Kofchak posted a video to the Larksville Police Department’s Facebook page of him lip-syncing to Tom Jones’ “What’s New Pussycat” for over two minutes.
“I did it in one take,” Kofchak said.
He saw various posts of other police officers taking the Law Enforcement Lip Sync Challenge on his Facebook timeline. A friend was constantly encouraging him to do a video. Then, one night, toward the end of his shift, inspiration hit.
“I was sitting in the office thinking what would I sing,” he said. “Then I saw this cat statue I had, and Tom Jones’ ‘What’s New Pussycat’ came to mind.”
Kofchak recorded his video and posted it to the department’s Facebook page. It became a hit, gathering over 50,000 views.
“It (the challenge) does paint us in a positive light,” Kofchak said, noting he is not sure what kind of teasing he will get from his barber.
