BY ELAINE STIEB
Lake Orion Review Editor
People who donated their time to help out Lake Orion’s Police Department were honored at an appreciation dinner on April 14.
Reserve officers in the village are trained in procedural and substantive law and tactics and volunteer all of their time and service.
According to LO Police Chief Jerry Narsh, reserves are the second officer in patrol cars. They walk foot patrols downtown. They staff the eight officer bike patrol unit that is able to quickly respond during festivals, parades and other events.
Reserve officers also staff the village’s Youth Bureau Program that works to divert minor youth crime from the formal court process.
‘What makes the volunteer service of our reserve police officers unique from all other volunteers service is they put their lives on the line for this community each and every time they are on duty,? Narsh said.
Lake Orion’s reserve officers include Rob Reetz, JoAnn Ingoglia, Chuck McLaughlin, Al Williams, Paul Deesen, Jean Cochran, Chris Drew, Tammy Wolff, Michelle Dennis, Scott Michelin, Amy Fong-Kretzmer, Zonnie Fritsch, Stephen Bauer, Denny Emmons, John Fales, Russ Greenless, Rich Henderson, Scott Jones, Krista Lester, David Mirku, Joe Sare, Mark Titus.
Narsh told about the effectiveness of the reserves during the Sagebrush fire in March 2004.
As the fire continued to grow out of control, Narsh decided to contact reserves for security, crowd control and possibly building evacuations. Twelve officers showed up.
‘Many of them were already at their place of work, telling their employer they mus leave. These officers stayed on post without question or complaint until late in the evening. Some of these officers worked 16 hours that day,? Narsh said.
Reserve officers who contributed more than 200 hours last year were Sare (361.5), Mirku (316) and Fong-Kretzmer (253.5).
Fong-Kretzmer received recognition for an award she received at an Orion/Oxford Boys and Girls Club on April 6. The program she heads, the police department’s Kids & Kops program, was awarded the Community Service award for 2005 in recognition of the value of the program in working with local youth.
Fred Lizyness was presented with a special citizen citation for his attempt to pull an unconscious man from the waters of Lake Orion last June.
Lizyness, the manager of Rustic Cabins on South Broadway, went out into the lake in a boat to try to pull one of his tenants out of the water. The man, 53, was later pronounced death.