Local businesses donate special response vehicle to sheriff’s office
Pictured, from left, are JD Higgins, Jay D. Enterprises; Chris Bland, Sign Here Graphics; Rob Bowman, EMS Southwest; Sgt. Marshall Simmons; Andy Chumney, Peacock Keller Law Firm; and Chief Deputy Zack Howard and Sheriff Marcus Simms.
Local businesses donated to an initiative to help the Greene County Sheriff’s Office secure a Polaris Ranger that will be utilized as a special service vehicle.
The Greene County Sheriff’s Office now has another vital tool to assist the office in its law enforcement initiatives because of support from various local businesses.
The sheriff’s office obtained a 2013 Polaris Ranger at the beginning of 2020 that will be utilized as a special service vehicle. The Ranger was originally received by Greene County’s Parks and Recreation Department on a grant in 2013 that has since expired.
That was when the local businesses stepped in.
Sheriff Marcus Simms said Jay D. Enterprises donated a trailer for transporting the Ranger, Peacock Keller Law firm donated the graphics, Sign Here Graphics installed the graphics, and donated the design time, and EMS Southwest donated medical supplies to include a folding back board and medical bag filled will equipment.
The sheriff’s office displayed the Ranger Sept. 11 and recognized the donors who helped make it all possible.
“I can not thank our local businesses enough for their generous donations and support for the Greene County Sheriff’s Office,” Simms said.
Simms said emergency lights and a siren were repurposed from previously decommissioned patrol cars. The lights and siren were installed by Chief Deputy Zack Howard and Sgt. Marshall Simmons.
Donors were also given certificates of appreciation from the sheriff’s office for their donations.
Simms said the special service vehicle will be utilized for events such as the Greene County Fair and the Flashlight Drags. It will also be used for patrolling the Greene River trails and other county properties, for assisting with search and rescue missions and for assisting in the apprehension of people wanted on warrants.
Additionally, Simms said, it will be available to first responders around the county to enable them to get to places in a timely manner that their emergency vehicles are unable to go.
The special response vehicle was utilized six times prior to its full completion for missing persons, wanted persons and locating a suspicious vehicle, including a search and rescue for a missing person in Mingo Creek County Park.
“This special service vehicle will serve as a valuable asset to our office, to other law enforcement and to first responders throughout our county,” Simms said. “It will enable personnel to get where they are needed in a timely manner and possibly save lives.”