By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post
I always liked Glen Kochanowski, so I was quite sad to learn that the former Saline County Sheriff died Saturday at the age of 76.
While he could be tough, Glen had a way of making people who weren’t breaking the law feel special.
Although I had read about him on numerous occasions prior, I didn’t meet Glen until the spring of 2011 when a survey about the Saline County Jail and its possible expansion was being conducted.
At the time, I was Director of Public Relations at Kansas Wesleyan University. Arrangements had been made for students in the university’s criminal justice program to compile the survey results on behalf of the Saline County Sheriff’s Office. As one of my jobs was taking care of the university’s printing needs, I was tasked with getting the survey printed on sheriff’s office letterhead and then mailed out to Saline County residents.
Once that task was complete, I stopped by the sheriff’s office to drop off the unused stationery. I expected to be there just long enough to hand over the leftover stationery, but Glen had other plans. I was ushered into Glen’s office, where he promptly thanked me for my role in helping get out the survey. To me, what I had done was just another part of my job, but Glen made it seem special and me special for doing it.
Just a couple of days before, Glen had issued an invitation to the public to tour the jail and see for themselves why a new or expanded jail was needed. During our conversation, I told Glen that I was going to take him up on his offer and that I would schedule an appointment to tour the jail.
He would have none of that.
“Let’s just do it right now,” he insisted.
Before I could say that I didn’t want to take up any more of his time that day, Glen was on the phone to then Captain Roger Soldan, and before I knew it, the three of us were making our way through the double locked doors and into the jail. Forty-five minutes to an hour later, I completed a very thorough tour of the jail.
It is a shame that the citizens of Saline County didn’t approve a sales tax increase to pay for a new jail or at least additional facilities. Such were greatly needed back in 2011 and are even needed more so today.
Occasionally over the years, I would run into Glen at meetings or public events. He always had a big smile on his face and made a point to find out how life was treating me. Again, he took the time to make someone else feel special.
When the sheriff’s office and the Salina Police Department restarted the Citizens Academy in the fall of 2014, I was in the first class. Glen spotted me amongst those waiting for the class to begin on the first night and came over to chat for a few minutes.
When my Citizens Academy class graduated 11 weeks or so later, in addition to a group photo and a certificate, we were given mini badges and challenge coins from both agencies. Someone told us that the tradition was that law enforcement folks who didn’t have their sheriff’s office challenge coins with them when the sheriff asked to see them had to buy the sheriff dinner. When I knew I was going to see Glen at an event or meeting, I made sure to take my challenge coin with me. He always laughed whenever I showed it to him.
I know there are those who didn’t care for Glen, but I am not among them. He always treated me well and I have observed on numerous occasions how he treated others the same. I will miss my friend.
R.I.P, Glen. You deserve it.