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7 <br /> <br />Police Reserves <br />The Orono Police Reserves were busy once again. They worked many regular events <br />such as Tour De Tonka, football games, Orono High School graduation, Polar Plunge, <br />Holiday Train, Orono Tree Lighting, Gear West Half <br />Marathon, Long Lake Fire 5k, Excelsior 4th of July <br />Fireworks, Orono High School parade, training the <br />Orono Police Explorers, and many more events around <br />the Lake Minnetonka area and Hennepin County. We <br />currently have 10 members that range from college <br />students to business owners. The reserves donated <br />around an estimated 2,060 hours to our communities. <br />We had two reserve officers graduate from the <br />Hennepin County Reserve School in 2023. <br />Congratulations to Jack Peluf and Izzy Bagan. <br /> <br />Police CSO-Cadet Program <br />In recent times, it has been very difficult to recruit new officers into law enforcement. <br />In attempt to remedy this issue, in 2023, the Orono Police Department created a CSO- <br />Cadet program. The CSO-Cadet program’s intent is to hire individuals before they go to <br />college, employ them throughout college, give them scholarships towards their <br />education and then retain them as police officers when we have openings. <br />In the Summer of 2023, we were able to employ two CSO-Cadets, Izzy Bagan and <br />Kohlton Beck. Izzy, a graduate of Orono H.S., is doing four years of work at St. Thomas <br />University where she is double-majoring. Kohlton is the son of our Sgt. Kenny Beck and <br />is a graduate of Delano H.S. He has invested in the two-year program at Alexandria <br />Technical College and should finish in the Spring of 2024. <br />Both CSO-Cadets have shown a ton of dedication to the program and even volunteer <br />during their time off as Orono PD Reserves. <br /> <br />Pictured: Deputy Chief Wittke, <br />Officer Slipka, Reserve Officer <br />Peluf, Reserve Officer Bagan and <br />Officer Sherman <br />201