On Friday February 28th, the Fairview Township Police Department held their annual appreciation and awards banquet.  The event was held at the ABWE (Association of Baptists for Worldwide Evangelism) in New Cumberland.  This is a time where the department as a whole is recognized for their service to the community.  In addition, certain officers are given awards for the way they handled a specific incident or performed their duties in the past year.  

We were honored to have Senator Mike Regan as the guest speaker, who expressed his gratitude towards the officers.  Fairview Township Board of Supervisors President Dr. Larry Cox also said very kind words about the work performed by the officers.

Officer Chad Bowman was the recipient of the Officer of the Year award.  Ofc. Bowman has performed his job at a very high level, demonstrated great decision making and judgment, has displayed a positive attitude, and represented this department well within the community.  In addition to doing his job in an exemplary manner, he has coordinated the department's No-Shave November Fundraiser which has raised thousands of dollars for children's charities.  He alone raised almost $1,400 in last year's event.  Ofc. Bowman has been with the department since 2016 and worked at Lebanon PD prior to coming to Fairview Township.  His wife and children were present when he received his award. He also received Life Saving awards for administering naloxone to three people who overdosed on an opioid, as well as administering CPR and using an AED on another individual. Ofc. Bowman also received a Chief's Commendation for his part in safely and quickly resolving an incident in which shots were fired at utility workers in July 2019.

Officer. Kayla Miske, who has also been with the department since 2016, received the newly introduced Community Service award. She received the award in part for her involvement with the kids in our community, particular her interactions with young girls. She is an instructor in the TEAM (Teaching, Educating, and Mentoring) program for 5th grade students, and has done presentations on cyber-safety to middle school students, presentations to young girls at the middle school lock-in, and also participates in the teen-mentoring event at Hello Gorgeous in Cumberland County.  During the banquet, Ofc. Miske also received a Lifesaving award for using naloxone on one individual, and two Chief's Commendations.  One Commendation was for her part in arresting several people responsible for a series of thefts from vehicles and a second Commendation for successfully helping a suicidal subject get the help needed.  

In addition, the following officers were also recognized during the event:

Sgt. Mike Bennage- Life Saving award for using naloxone on five individuals who overdosed on an opioid; Chief's Commendation for a large drug seizure and arrest in August 2019.

Ofc. Chris Bickel- Life Saving award for using naloxone on three individuals who overdosed on an opioid; Chief's Commendations for his part in safely and quickly resolving an incident in which shots were fired at utility workers in July 2019; Chief's Commendation for a methamphetamine investigation and arrest in August 2019.

Ofc. Mike Bishop- Chief's Commendation for assisting a neighboring agency apprehend a person wanted for a homicide in July 2019; Chief's Commendation for quickly identifying and arresting a subject who committed an armed robbery in September 2019; Chief's Commendation for his exemplary work on a stabbing incident in October 2019; Chief's Commendation for successfully helping a suicidal subject get the help needed in November 2019.

Sgt. Jarrett Boyles- Performing CPR and using an AED to resuscitate an individual.

Sgt. Timothy Dehoff- Chief's Commendation for safely resolving a situation involving an armed subject in October 2019.

Forensic Specialist Connie Hertzog- Chief's Commendation for her exemplary work on a stabbing incident in October 2019.

Det. Anthony Jackson- Chief's Commendation for his part in arresting several people in connection to numerous thefts from vehicles in April and May 2019.

Ofc. Brian Kinney- Life Saving award for using naloxone on one individual who overdosed on an opioid.

Sgt. Matthew LaKari- Letter of Commendation for assisting a neighboring agency on an incident involving shots fired at officers in November 2019.

Det. Lotier- Chief's Commendation for his exemplary work on a stabbing incident in October 2019.

Ofc. Joshua Poplin- Life Saving award for using CPR to resuscitate an individual; Chief's Commendation for a methamphetamine investigation and arrest in August 2019; Chief's Commendation for safely resolving a situation involving an armed subject in October 2019.

Ofc. Abigail Roberts- Chief's Commendation for a large drug seizure and arrest in August 2019; Chief's Commendation for her exemplary work on a stabbing incident in October 2019; Letter of Commendation for assisting a neighboring agency on an incident involving shots fired at officers in November 2019.

Ofc. Kohl Welcomer- Chief's Commendation for his exemplary work on a stabbing incident in October 2019

Ofc. Brandon Yeager- Chief's Commendation for his part in arresting several people in connection to numerous thefts from vehicles in April and May 2019.

Congratulations to all of the officers, and thank you to all the officers and staff at the Fairview Township Police Department for the great job you do. Your dedication and sacrifice you and your family make to serve this community is very much appreciated.

Please see our Facebook page for additional photos from the event.