Department Officially Welcomes Wolf as New Ordinance Officer
On Thursday, June 7, Marshfield Police Department held a special ceremony to officially welcome Kayla Wolf into her new role as an Ordinance Control/Humane Officer.
Ordinance Officers are not sworn-in like most officers, so in place of a traditional swearing-in ceremony, a Blessing of the Badge ceremony was held at the department. Family and friends were in attendance, as well as other officers who wished to have their badges blessed by retired Police Chaplain and Reverend Mark Krueger.
“Receiving her badge today is the true realization of her dream,” said Staff Supervisor Lorrie Krokstrom in her opening remarks. “Kayla has had a very busy week and a half since she started with us on Tuesday, May 29th.”
As part of the ceremony, Krokstrom provided a history of badges and remarked on how the badge serves as a symbol of those in service.
“Today, we still have a class of people that represent justice, authority, law and order, and safety to all they protect, and it is our officers,” she said. “Though they carry different tools, the badge still ties them back to this time. Their badge shows the ‘allegiance’ to their city or state, and is still a symbol of honor and justice. The badge they wear says ‘I am sent by someone because I am a person of honor’. It says ‘I know the price of peace and I’m willing to stand for it’.”
“The men and women in this room are a valuable part of our community. Our first responders spend tireless hours serving, protecting and being there in the worst moments of people’s lives,” she added. “Oftentimes they are saving lives (human and animal). With that being said each are honored to put on their uniforms.”
Reverend Krueger then spoke about biblical references to badges and service.
“In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul extols us to ‘put on the full armor of God so that when the day of evil comes you may be able to stand your ground,’ and he continues, ‘with all this take up the shield of faith,’ he said. “This certainly applies to each and every one of you in uniform. In today’s world, who but police officers are tasked with facing the worst in society and not shirking from this duty, standing their ground to protect others.”
Krueger then asked those in attendance to join in prayer, and he anointed the badges with oil and blessed them.
After the badge blessing ceremony, Assistant Chief Pat Zeps then invited Wolf and husband, Matt, to come forward, where she repeated the following:
“On my honor, I will never betray my badge, my integrity, my character, or the public trust. I will always have the courage to hold myself and others accountable for our actions.
I will always uphold the Constitution and community I serve.”
Matt (who wears a badge himself as a firefighter/paramedic for Marshfield Fire & Rescue) then fastened the badge to Kayla’s uniform and all in attendance celebrated with cake and ice cream.
“Kayla was a dear friend and member. I confirmed Kayla, so I’ve known her and her family for many years,” said Krueger after the event. “It was an honor and privilege to have her fulfill one of her life’s dreams.”
Krueger added that he was honored to facilitate the badge blessing, and spoke to the connection between law enforcement and faith.
“It’s all about making the community a safe and better place to live,” he said. “It’s an honor and privilege to be a police chaplain and to be called in and to counsel police, but also to be called in when there is emergencies and tragedies where we can help families. We’re all in this together and if we can help and serve one another, that’s what it’s all about.”
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