Department Awards

Award Overview

Beginning in 2015 the Hanover Park Police Department wanted to recognize one sworn officer and one civilian employee for service above and beyond. A committee was formed and the end result became known as the Ahlstrand Award. This award is named after former Hanover Park Police Chief Carl Ahlstrand, who was tragically killed in the line of duty February 22, 1959. It was determined that any department employee is eligible to be selected, and nominations may be made by any employee. 

Each year, (beginning in 2015), the Ahlstrand Award is presented to one sworn officer and one civilian employee who demonstrate exemplary work performance, dedication to the department, and professionalism during the prior year. The recipients of this award are selected by a committee utilizing a selection process.

Requirements

• The employee should exemplify the high standards of excellence and public service that is set forth by the department.
• Recipients should be the type of employee that sets an example for the public and their peers with their conduct, work ethic, compassion, attendance and attitude.
• The employee demonstrates a high level of initiative and provides outstanding customer service both internally and externally.

2018 Winners

^{Pictured left to right: Chief Menough, Community Service Officer Mucha, Officer Miranda, &Village President Craig}

For the 2018 Civilian Employee of the Year honor, CSO Mucha was recognized for her positive attitude, dependability, and commitment to customer service. She also was very proactive and had a strong work ethic while balancing a wide variety of tasks.  CSO Mucha is an asset to the Police Department and is consistently an outstanding employee.

For the 2018 Sworn Officer of the Year, Detective Miranda was recognized for his handling of three major investigations that included an armed robbery of a gas station in which he gathered physical and video evidence, obtained a confession, and received approval for felony charges, a burglary investigation in which charges were approved against a subject who was known to be conducting car burglaries in several area towns, and broke-up a retail theft ring in which items stolen from local businesses were being pawned at village pawn shops.  He also served as an outstanding liaison between the police department and the Hispanic community which included a presentation for the Spanish language Area Response Team (ART) meeting held at a local church.  The presentation was very well-attended, and he represented himself and the police department in an extremely professional, positive manner.