(Greensburg, IN) – Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Coordinator Mike Eggleston was named the 41st Law Enforcement Officer of the Year by the Greensburg Optimist Club on Thursday.
Douglas Orr with the Optimist Club presented a plaque to Davis during the event held at the Greensburg Community Bread of Life (pictured).
The award is presented each year to a police officer or sheriff’s deputy whose service and dedication reflect the Optimist Club’s values of optimism, cheerfulness, and commitment to others.
Eggleston has spent 34 years in local and federal law enforcement, and says he’s surprised to be added to the list of previous recipients.
“I’m incredibly humbled to considered a part of that group, and excited to prove that I truly indeed deserve this,” Eggleston said.
Since it launched in February, the CIT has handled more than 170 cases in which team members have assisted people and families in the City of Greensburg and Decatur County deal with mental health episodes and other crises.
Eggleston credits a lot of the program’s success to guidance and support received from Sheriff Bill Meyerrose and Chief Deputy Eric Blodgett.
“But most of all, my team, which is willing to jump into any and every situation and do whatever it takes to improve the livelihood and status of the county, which is incredible,” Eggleston said.
“When Michael Eggleston came to the Decatur County Detention Center in January 2023 as Jail Commander, he brought with him an attitude of positive change, change of bettering the detention center for both staff and inmates,” said Sheriff Meyerrose, who nominated Eggleston. “Now that he is leading our Crisis Intervention Team, he is bringing more positive changes to not only the Decatur County Detention Center, but to our community as a whole.”
Those changes include his work with Decatur County Community Foundation Executive Director Tami Wenning, which led to securing a $5 million Lilly Endowment grant to launch a fully-funded program.
The initiative is administered by the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office partnership with a number of community agencies. It now includes a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and two CIT deputies trained in the nationally recognized crisis intervention protocol.
CIT personnel duties include going along with first responders to mental health and substance use crises; providing programming, counseling, and recovery supports within the detention center; working with community partners to expand resources throughout the county, and supporting officer wellness initiatives across local agencies.
Those who joined Optimist Club members at Thursday’s event were CIT personnel, Greensburg Police Chief Mike McNealy and several of his officers; Indiana State Police Superintendent and Decatur County resident Anthony Scott; Greensburg Mayor Joshua Marsh, and several Decatur County Sheriff’s deputies.
The Greensburg Optimist Club started presenting the Law Enforcement Officer of the Year in 1985.
