| Place a Classified | Subscribe today | July 10, 2009 |
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Honoring police worker
POCATELLO - Kim Ellis is a Pocatello Police Department employee with a broad job description.
On a rainy Friday afternoon, the call of duty involved moving furniture for an elderly Chubbuck woman. As Pocatello Community Services assistant, Ellis heads his department's many volunteer programs. His job boils down to making life a bit easier for local residents.
''She called because it was listed as community services in the phone book. She didn't have anybody to pick her bed up and her little chest of drawers. We went over and picked it up and dropped it off,'' said Ellis, who brought a few of his police department volunteers to help. ''What do you do? You can't just turn your back on somebody.'' For his willingness to go the extra mile, the Pocatello Rotary Club named Ellis its Law Enforcement Professional of the Year on May 29.
Ellis was born and raised in Southeast Idaho and retired at age 38 after a 21-year U.S. Army career. In the fall of 1993, he joined the police department.
He considers working with volunteers to be the best part of his job. ''They do a lot of service, a lot of good for the community and being able to help the citizens and stuff, just like this little thing today,'' Ellis said.
In 2007, Ellis' 1,200 police volunteers donated 12,441 hours of work to the city. The monetary value of their labor is estimated at $224,445, he said.
''For a city of Pocatello's size, we have more volunteers than any other city in the country,'' Ellis said. Ellis runs the local McGruff House program, which offers local youths safe havens in case of emergencies.
He said 546 homes in the community post the McGruff sticker in their windows, alerting children that they can find help inside. He oversees the Stranger Danger child safety program that sends representatives into schools to teach children how to be safe.
He is in charge of an Internet safety program for middle school and elementary students. And for anyone who may ever have to deal with an angry customer, he offers a workplace violence program.
Ellis also protects the community from scams and can remove residents from junk mail lists. ''It's just things you need to be aware of and know and look out for to prevent yourself from being a victim,'' Ellis said. Article RatingReader CommentsSubmit a CommentCommenting RulesWe encourage your feedback and dialog. All comments are subject to deletion by our Web staff.
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