Sultan thanks Sheriff's Explorers for keeping peace

The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office Explorers program was recognized for its contributions to public safety during Sultan's Summer Shindig festival this year, earning major accolades from the city of Sultan during a presentation held last week.

The Snohomish County Explorers is a group of students age 14-21 interested in learning firsthand what it's like to have a career in law enforcement. The recognition took place during the Sultan City Council meeting on Thursday, Aug. 11, at Sultan City Hall. Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Debbie Copple summarized the group's achievements for the council, introducing Explorer Tanner Hedlund to Mayor Carolyn Eslick and members of the council.

The Snohomish County Sheriff's Explorers program is headed up by Deputy Jason Toner, a former school resource officer for the Sultan School District. The Explorers were on patrol 24 hours a day during Shindig, in order to ensure vendor merchandise remained secure.

"I want to acknowledge the contribution that the Snohomish County Explorers program made to the success of the Sultan Shindig,GÇ¥ Copple said. "They did a fabulous job keeping Sultan safe and protecting our property and the vendors' property during that event.GÇ¥

This year's festival was not without incident. During the early morning hours on Saturday, July 9, a girl was spotted removing items from a vendor's tent. The theft was reported at around 3 a.m. by one of the vendors, and the Explorers followed up by arriving at the scene of the theft and calling 911. An additional call came in about a girl heading away from the vendor area carrying several bags, so Hedlund and his captain decided to do some investigating while waiting for officers to arrive.

They located the 13-year-old suspect behind Sultan City Hall.

When all was said and done, the stolen merchandise was returned to the vendors, Hedlund said.

Copple said the team exhibited the utmost professionalism the entire weekend.

"They have been a very, very impressive group of young people to work with,GÇ¥ Copple said. "I have enjoyed every minute of being around them, and I can tell you that society is in good hands if this group is any indication of that.GÇ¥

The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office Explorers have earned numerous honors this year. In January, a team of eight Snohomish County Explorers traveled to Chandler, Arizona for a national competition, where more than a thousand explorers from across the United States competed in 25 events. The competition included both tactical scenarios and physical challenges.

Snohomish County Explorers took first place in Incident Command and in Rapid Response Active Shooter, second place in Laser Operations and fourth place in the team three-mile run.

In March they prevailed during the Federal Way Tactical Challenge, with the competition team placing in six of the 11 events. The team earned four first-place finishes and achieved first place overall. A team made up of newer recruits made its mark as well, placing in two events.

They were champions again during the 2016 Apple Cup Explorer Challenge in May, which was sponsored by the Yakima Police Department.

During training, Explorers engage in experience-based lessons, including high-risk traffic stops, driving infractions, building searches, mock domestic call response and tactical exercises. Explorers are expected to serve the community and given numerous opportunities to put what they learn into practice. During the summer, Explorers volunteer at various community events, including National Night Out, Relay for Life and other festivals like Sultan's Summer Shindig.

Explorers are held to a high standard, Toner said, as they are expected to uphold the values of the sheriff's office. They must be passing their classes and need to be drug- and alcohol-free.

Explorer academies are held twice a year, giving participants can get a sense of what it would be like at the law enforcement academy. The basic academy is an intensive weeklong program that includes instruction in ethics, traffic control, criminal law and crime scene investigation. Once an Explorer has successfully gone through the basic academy, they are eligible for the more specialized advanced academy.

Advanced academy attendees can choose to focus on investigations, narcotics investigations or leadership.

Hedlund, a 19-year-old from Mukilteo, is currently studying criminal justice at Everett Community College and looks forward to seeking a career in law enforcement. Other explorers who received certificates of appreciation from the city included Joseph Mainella, Bryan Campbell, Nick Watson, Dustin Nguyen, Thomas Thorne, Connor Telford and Jared Nelson.

The program gives youth the opportunity to develop confidence and learn to be leaders, Toner said.

"It's amazing to see these kids come into the post as shy, immature 14-year-olds, and leave as confident, intelligent and focused young men and women that have a desire to serve their community and make a difference in the world around them,GÇ¥ Toner said.

The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office Explorer Post 207 is a nonprofit organization, to which contributions are tax deductible. For more information about the Explorers program, visit http://snohomishcountywa.gov/3534/Sheriffs-Explorers or email Toner at-á jason.toner@snoco.org.