Behind the badge: PdC police, citizens who wear badges
The display of thank yous helps to brighten the days of the officers on the Prairie du Chien Police force. “I can only tell people ‘good job’ so many times. It’s an added bonus when the community says it too. Our officers are leaders and they have to be,” said Police Chief Chad Abram. (Photos by Caitlin Bittner)
Editors note: This is the first part of a small series highlighting the work of Prairie du Chien’s police officers following the deaths of fellow officers across the country.
By Caitlin Bittner
In recent weeks, there have been copious amounts of support pouring into the Prairie du Chien Police Department. “We’ve gotten a lot of cards, Facebook messages, baked goods, Dilly bars, cookies, bananas, flowers,” said Sgt. Kyle Teynor.
While the sweet treats and kind gestures have been devoured and appreciated, the department stressed they didn’t expect this.
“It’s nice to have that reassurance. But, we didn’t think the community didn’t support us,” Teynor said.
“They’re not necessary, but you can tell it brightens [the officers’] day,” said Police Chief Chad Abram, speaking to the effect of the police department’s new display of cards. “I can only tell people ‘good job’ so many times. It’s an added bonus when the community says it too. Our officers are leaders and they have to be.”
Most of the cards and drawings received convey thank yous for a job well done, and condolences in the wake of the recent police shootings across the United States.
“When there are problems in the community, we rely on the community to help us do our jobs. We can’t be everywhere at all hours of the day. We need their trust to provide an opportunity for us to help them,” explained Teynor.
When Abram took over as the chief of police in 2010, he noted that his mantra is “build bridges, not fences.” “We wanted to build community trust. It goes a long way. Police officers are just people who wear a badge 2,800 hours out of the year,” said Abram.
Both Teynor and Abram think the image of police officers in the public’s eye needs to be revamped. “The trend needs to change,” asserted Teynor.
“We’re here to help. We don’t like it when someone says to their kids ‘be careful or the cops are going to take you to jail,’” added Abram.
In order to help build and strengthen rapport with the citizens of Prairie du Chien, officers have been known to show up at community events like the annual Fourth of July fireworks over the Mississippi River. “We had officers down there handing out glow sticks,” said Abram.
Officers are also happy to go into the schools and help children see them as someone to talk to, not as someone to be afraid of. “When I go in to talk to a class, I erase ‘sergeant.’ I introduce myself as ‘Kyle Teynor,’” he noted.
And, when you do interact with police officers for an official reason, like a traffic stop, they urge you to keep something in mind. “We’re just as nervous about the stop as they are,” said Teynor. “We don’t know your intentions. We don’t know where you just came from. You could have been hanging out with your family and be on cloud nine, or you could have just come from your ex-wife’s house. Our goal is to educate, and only assess a penalty if we have to. We want to leave in one piece, too,”stated Teynor.
