When funding is tight, community involvement, team work and good communication help law officers get the job done, says Pierce County sheriff candidate Nancy Ortwerth.

She said she has the background and the personality to develop those resources.

“Our personalities are totally different, and I think the way I deal with people would be a big asset to the department,” said Ortwerth of her race against incumbent Everett Muhlhausen.

Ortwerth said she will work at improving communications, cooperation and morale in the department and in the community in general.

“We need help from the citizens to make our department successful in making this a safe community,” said Ortwerth. “I want the citizens of Pierce County to be proud that they live here.”

‘Willing to listen’

As for department morale, while Ortwerth stopped short of saying it is bad, she said it could be better. She said she is easy to talk to and easy to work with.

“If you know your boss cares, you’re going to give more,” said Ortwerth. “I’m willing to listen. I want to listen. I’ll be there.”

Ortwerth, who started her career in law enforcement when she was hired by the Ellsworth Police Department in 1989, has worked in the Sheriff’s Department since 1998.

“I want to improve morale and improve the team aspect to make it more of a team throughout the whole department,” said Ortwerth. She said there should be better sharing of information among officers in the different segments of the department and among those who work different shifts.

She said there are “communication gaps” as information isn’t passed on.

The department has a message board in the patrol room and officers communicate in person or through e-mails, “but things get forgotten,” said Ortwerth.

She said she would work to develop “a little more organized” system of communications among the nearly 50 officers in the department.

A limited budget, with no money for more workers, is part of the problem, said Ortwerth.

“We’re at minimum staff,” she said, adding that while the staffing level isn’t dangerous yet, it is “heading in that direction.”

“We’re driving our cars longer and equipment gets used longer, so the chance of it not working, wearing out, is higher,” said Ortwerth, noting that a tight budget affects the department in other ways too.

Greater efficiencies and small cuts in some areas are possible and are things Ortwerth plans to examine. While overtime can be trimmed, it can’t be eliminated, said Ortwerth.

“We don’t have extra officers sitting around somewhere,” she said. “You can keep a tight rein on (overtime), but it’s not unavoidable.”

The department is a round-the-clock operation, and when some one is out sick or on vacation, the shift still has to be filled, said Ortwerth.

Regular training is vital, and the department’s officers know it, she said.

“It’s not like you’ve got to force them to go. They love to go,” said Ortwerth. “The criminals are always one step ahead, and we’re falling behind.

She said she will work to see that officers get the training they want and need.

Working with kids

Ortwerth currently works as DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) officer during the school year and as a patrol officer in the summer. She also trains DARE officers for other municipalities.

“I love it,” said Ortwerth. “I’m with the kids every day, a different school every day.”

She works with kindergartners through sixth-graders in the Spring Valley, Elmwood, Plum City, Prescott and Ellsworth school districts.

While DARE offers a 10-week program on drug resistance for fifth- or sixth-graders, Ortwerth also works with younger children on topics such as bullies and making choices.

“They get to know me, who I am, that law enforcement officers are OK people,” said Ortwerth.

She said that through her work in the schools, she has developed friendships that have lasted for years and is greeted as “Officer Nancy” by students now old enough to vote.

In other cases, she said, young victims or troubled youngsters have come to her with their problems.

“I’ve had kids who won’t talk to anyone until I’m there.” Ortwerth said, “Hopefully I’ve saved some. Hopefully down the road, I’ll have saved a bunch.”

“If it was up to me, every officer would be a DARE officer for up to a year,” said Ortwerth. She said the experience has taught her to communicate with people of all ages and that absolute honesty is essential.

But, she said, there’s another benefit. DARE officers “see the positive side of life,” while patrol officers are usually called when things go bad.

Ortwerth said her experience with DARE has helped her develop public speaking skills and running her business (See Saw Crafts Too), even though it’s small, has taught her business management skills.

But being sheriff is her goal.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. It’s been a goal of mine since I got in law enforcement,” said Ortwerth. “I always thought it would be fun to work my way to the top.”

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