Child safety part of good policing
Community policing means a lot more than having police in your community.
As a lieutenant for the Community Policing Division of the Kane County Sheriff's Department, Don Kramer views child safety as a key component of his service.
Kramer, the son of former county Sheriff George Kramer, has been with the department since 1979, and was appointed to the community policing role by current Sheriff Pat Perez last year.
The department's ongoing child safety-seat inspections are key to helping new parents learn how to properly place children in a car seat.
"We inspect between 30 and 50 seats at these inspections, that we do in conjunction with the Kane County Safe Kids organization," Kramer said. "On average, about 70 percent of child safety seats are incorrectly installed by caregivers prior to the check-point training."
About 10 years ago, the department began a child identification program to assist police or fire personnel in emergencies, Kramer said.
Once the ID card is processed, it is best to keep it in a plastic sleeve on the side of the child safety seat in the car, Kramer advised.
George is doing fine: You can't talk to Lt. Don Kramer without asking him how his father is doing.
Plenty of folks in the Tri-Cities area remember George Kramer as a Batavia police officer for 23 years and then as the county sheriff from 1978 to 1986.
He was a striking figure during parades, with his tall frame atop a horse as a member of the Kane County Mounted Patrol. One got the impression that this was one of George's favorite things to do.
"He has a little hip trouble now, but otherwise my father is doing fine, living near Flint, Mich., and he comes down here to visit about once a month," said Don, who reminded me George also had a short stint as the chief of the Sandwich Police Department after leaving the sheriff's office in the hands of John Randall.
As with any sheriff, George Kramer had his backers and detractors, but I heard plenty of stories about how this big man displayed his big heart in helping people steer clear of potential trouble and bad decisions in their lives. And that's a nice legacy for a cop.
No shoelace hassle: You'd never expect a "run" on shoelaces, but that's what it seemed like when I finally decided to stop in at Greg's Shoe Repair in Geneva to buy some new laces to replace a badly worn-out pair.
Another fellow was in the store doing the exact same thing, but he had an interesting -- and good -- reason for doing so.
"I'm getting on a plane soon, and I figured, with my luck, these old laces would snap when taking my shoes off in the security lines," he said.
Now that's Nordic: My wife talked me into going to her Batavia Park District Nordic Walking class last Saturday -- despite weather fit for Norway.
I was wrong in thinking no one else would come.
Through rain and bits of snow, everyone in her class showed up with a strong Nordic spirit.
dheun@sbcglobal.net