The "Manhattan Optimist Club Bulletin" Vol. 2026 #38 6-24-26
VOLUME 2026 JUNE 24 NUMBER 38
President Kelly Karl welcomed everyone, Judy Nickelson gave us our morning reflection, followed by the flag salute.
Steve Havenstein noted today is the annual Respect for Law meeting, and Officer Brian Swearingen was nominated by members of the Riley County Police Department for the Manhattan Optimist's Officer of the Year Award. Steve shared Brian's nominating letter from the RCPD:
Brian Swearingen has served with the Riley County Police Department since 2003 and has devoted a large part of his career to working as a School Resource Officer at Manhattan High School. In that time Brian earned the trust of students, staff, and families throughout Riley County. His presence and patience with young people, and his ability to communicate in a calm and respectful way set him apart.
Brian is well known for the relationships he builds with students. Many of them seek him out when they are struggling because they know he will listen and treat them with dignity. One example that stands out occurred when Brian responded to a juvenile who was in a clear mental health crisis. The youth was agitated, yelling, and asking officers to hurt him. Brian knew this student from his work in the school and used that connection to keep the situation stable. Brian talked with the student in a calm and steady tone, kept him safe until help arrived, checked on family members, and made sure no one felt threatened. The incident ended peacefully because Brian relied on patience and communication.
Another example of his impact came during a Community Advisory Board meeting. A local school superintendent was asked about the School Resource Officer program and immediately spoke at length about Brian. He explained how much the school trusts him, how well he works with both staff and students, and how strongly they hoped to keep him in their building. This unsolicited public support shows what many in the schools already know: Brian is a reliable and necessary part of the team.
Along with his SRO duties, Brian also serves as the team leader for the RCPD Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team. Even with those responsibilities, he continues to put students first. He helps with safety planning, assists with crisis situations, supports families during difficult times, and remains involved in day-to-day school life. Staff often describe him as someone who brings stability and a sense of safety to the building.
Officer Swearingen is a positive and trusted figure for the youth of Riley County. His years of service, his consistent calm, and the strong relationships he has built within the schools make him a highly deserving of the recognition as the Manhattan Optimist Club Officer of the Year.
Steve presented Officer Brian Swearingen with the Manhattan Optimist Officer of the Year Award.
Officer Lt. Bortnick praised Officer Swearingen and noted some of his special attributes.
Brian has been an absolute pillar for the agency. He has spent most of his career in the SRO program, he has been in schools and has worked in schools working with a lot of great people and has done a lot of great things. Brian has an incredible knack for talking to people who other officers can't connect to at all. With the focus on mental health issues in law enforcement, having someone with that skill set is incredibly important. And with Sonia Gregorie, who retired last year, they were a double header team who had lots of experience with the schools and lots of experience with the students, and they knew how to do things. A new School Resource Officer has been selected and will be able to be mentored and trained by Brian and can continue the excellent work the SRO has done in the school setting.
He noted that the RCPD wants to make sure everyone goes home safely each day from their work, recreation, school, and dining.
He then shared some basic crime numbers with the group:
Overall, major crime is down 2.6% over last year.
Property crime has dropped 5.5% over last year.
One of the major property crimes is vehicle burglaries. Some of these are large losses for the victim because of theft of electronics or firearms. Nearly all thefts from vehicles are from ones with unlocked doors. Windows are VERY RARELY broken to get into locked cars. (NOTE: Officer Lt. Bortnick has only worked two or three in his 21-year career where windows were broken) The thieves look for unlocked cars with quick and easy access. Locking your car can prevent almost all vehicle burglaries.
The other calls they seem to be getting more often are mental health calls. Pawnee has set up a crisis stabilization unit on Hayes Drive. They do screenings and some interventions. It is also a place where a person can get screened when they are in crisis without RCPD intervention. They also have a mobile crisis unit that responds to a crisis at someone's home. Both have been valuable for the community. Their calls for mental health service are down 4% from last year. The RCPD does everything they can to get help and services to someone in a mental health crisis.
He also noted the Battle of the Badges is the 23rd and 24th of July and noted they would appreciate the help in winning the Battle and keeping the RCPD the reigning champions.
Lt. Bortnick thanked the Optimist for having them today.
Mike Fincham announced the Juneteenth celebration went well, but with some rain. He thanked Jerry Banaka, Clyde Scott, Steve Boeckman, and Dan O'Neill for helping with setting up and handing out refreshments.
Kelly Karl announced the Manhattan Optimist Club won the Manhattan Mercury's Reader's Choice Award for best civic organization. There will be a full-page ad in the supplement which will come out in the Manhattan Mercury noting all of the Reader's Choice Awards.
Clyde Scott announced a new raffle to raise funds for the Optimist Club. The prize is a $100 gift certificate to the Wine Dive. Tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20.
GUESTS: RCPD officials: Law Enforcement of the Year winner, Brian Swearinger, Lt. Bortnick, Corporal Shepard, and Josh Kinder, Public Information Officer. Bruce Bidwell's “much older” brother, Earle Bidwell. Gerit Garman's children, Alec and Ella. Mike Fincham's guests from the Juneteenth celebration, DeBorah Young and Elizabeth Bartley.
Meeting adjourned with the Optimist Creed.
SAVE THE DATE: October 24th is our 24th annual Chili Crawl.
NEXT WEEKS’S MEETING:
JULY 1 - MORNING MEETING: Program: Raymond Cloyd: Topic: “Get the “Sweet” low down on honeybees”
JULY 8 – NOON MEETING: Program: Doug Sebelius/Tom Hawk: Topic: “History of the Kansas Supreme Court”
JULY 15 – MORNING MEETING: Program: Melanie Highsmith, Riley County Historical Society: Topic: “The Founding of Manhattan Kansas”
JULY 22 – NOON MEETING: Program: Anne Smith, ATA Bus Services: Topic: “Update on Manhattan Public Transportation”
JULY 29 – MORNING MEETING: Program: Joshua Gering, Riley County EMS Services: Topic: “Update on Riley County EMS”
