Gurnee police recognize two as employees of the year

Crime Prevention Detective Shawn Gaylor and Evidence Custodian Dennis Meserve were presented with the Gurnee Police Officer of the Year Award and Police Civilian of the Year Award, respectively, at a ceremony Monday.

Both Gaylor, who has been with the department since 2013, and Meserve, who came on in 2019, said they were surprised to hear they'd been selected for recognition.

"I was very pleased, but to me I'm just doing my job," Meserve said.

Gaylor and Meserve each were nominated by for the award by a colleague. Nominations were reviewed by a committee of department employees who then recommended Gaylor and Meserve to Chief Brian Smith.

Smith said Gaylor and Meserve stand out as hard workers dedicated to the department's mission.

As crime prevention detective, Gaylor is perhaps the department's most accessible liaison to the Gurnee community.

Under her stewardship, the department's Facebook page has grown from about 4,000 followers to more than 10,000. She said engaging with the public through social media has helped investigators solve cases over the years.

Smith said Gaylor is the go-to person when the department is called on to prepare data or give a presentation. She works with Gurnee schools to make sure their safety plans are up-to-date and helps coordinate two lockdown drills per year. She also meets with Gurnee retailers regarding crime prevention tactics.

"It's nice to know that my hard work is being recognized," Gaylor said. "I do this every day and certainly don't expect it."

Meserve is tasked with taking care of all the property and evidence officers bring in from the field.

"We have rows and rows of shelves and boxes and a refrigerator full of DNA evidence," Meserve said.

He previously served with the Libertyville and Zion police departments and took over Gurnee's evidence room from predecessor Kristine Saffel in 2019. Meserve said Saffel left a great foundation for him to work with.

"He brought a set of fresh eyes and fresh ideas," Smith said. "He updated our processes and brought them into the times and implemented new technology and programs.