Lake sheriff's office loses experience through retirements in 2009
Talk about a brain drain.
The Lake County sheriff's office took a hard hit in the know-how department in 2009, as 26 people with a total of 607 years of experience retired.
The list of those who hung up their stars included some of the most well known people on the staff as well as a healthy slice of those who kept the outfit running in lower-profile roles.
Sheriff Mark Curran said all will be equally missed.
"We will certainly miss the tremendous wealth of experience and knowledge these men and women brought to their jobs every day," Curran said. "But at the same time, I am confident that our other employees will step up and maintain the standard of excellence in all our operations."
The roll call of the retirees is as follows:
• Deputy chiefs Michael Blazincic, Richard Eckenstahler, Stephen Bjorkquist and Richard Hamm.
• Lieutenants Bruce Scottberg, John Jansky, Kenneth Johnston and Martin Bertrand.
• Sergeant Leonard Brezinski.
• Deputy, corrections or court officers Howard Weinger, Gregory Reschke, Michael Salerno, Raul Aragon, John Hardin, Thomas Martin, Stephen McKay, Kenneth Miller, Murray Michelsen, Bruce Skipper and Norman Erickson.
• Administrative and telecommunications staffers Louise Bryner, Leo Kalisz, Dennis Kehrer, Barbara Armstrong, Sharon Schultz and Robert Kantola.
The people of Lake County thank them all for their service.
Center awards
The Lake County Children's Advocacy Center last week presented its annual awards for people and organizations that assist in the fight against child abuse.
Junior Troop 310 from St. Patrick's School in Wadsworth was named the recipient of the Incredible Kids Award for their work at the center.
State's Attorney Michael Waller said the 8-year-old girls of the troop decorated the center for Christmas and Halloween this year and also provided snacks and soft drinks for children who have visited the center.
The Community Support Award went to the Community Youth Network for assisting clients of the center by providing counseling for victims and their families.
Law Enforcement Awards were presented to Sgt. Brian Mullen of the Waukegan police, sheriff's Deputy Chief Richard Hamm and Det. John Hird of the Round Lake Beach police for their tireless efforts to support the center.
The Fred L. Foreman Award for significant effort in support of abused children was presented to Deputy State's Attorney Jeff Pavletic for his 25 years of service as a prosecutor.
New director
Rosemarie Gray has been named the new director of Lake County adult probation services, succeeding Frank Kuzmickus, who retired earlier this month.
Gray, a probation officer for 29 years, will be responsible for a staff of 86 people who supervise more than 4,500 cases annually.
She has worked in all divisions of the department and holds a degrees in psychology from Northern Illinois University and management from Webster University in St. Louis.