By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Sgt. Mitch Berens "stood on the wall" to serve and protect his community for 25 years, training a new generation in law enforcement how to not only be good officers, but members of the community.
This week, he retired to concentrate on his health as he battles cancer.
HPD Chief Don Scheibler and Berens both worked in the patrol division when they started on the police force in the 1990s.
"Mitch has served the community for 25 years. He's stood the wall to serve and protect this community," Scheibler said. "I am a firm believer that we take care of our people and our people will take care of the community and, in a time of need, our community will take care of us."
Berens, 51, marked his last day on the job Thursday.
He has been fighting cancer in his abdomen and brain since the fall. He was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic melanoma.
"The cancer meds that I am taking right now are really doing a good job," he said. "I don't always feel 100 percent, but I'm not going to let that ruin my retirement."
Berens has had two rounds of radiation on his brain and has been taking chemotherapy medication. His first round of treatment shrunk the tumors in his abdomen 65 percent.
"For me, it's a daily fight," he said, "but I think I'm winning it right now. I don't always feel 100 percent, but I am thankful I feel as good as I do."
Berens was diagnosed with melanoma 19 years ago, but the cancer went into remission.
"I have been dealing with this most of my career while I'm working," he said. "I can tell you the police department and the City of Hays administration have been wonderful working with me while I have been dealing with that."
Berens said he always wanted to be a police officer, once dreaming of being a trooper for the Kansas Highway Patrol. He was working as an officer in Oakley and going through the application process for the KHP when he received an offer to work for the HPD.
A Victoria native, Berens opted to take the job closer to home and drop out of the application process for the KHP.
He said being from the area has made it easier for him to relate to the public that he serves.
Berens' son, Shane, is now working his way through that same process and will start training for the KHP in June. Berens said he is very proud of his son.
"Any organization would be lucky to have him," he said.
Berens spoke about the legacy he hoped to leave for other young officers.
"It would be to be approachable," he said. "Don't come out of the academy and the training and try to be this macho police officer, because that doesn't always work.
"We have more positive contacts with the public than negative. You want to be able to visit with the public and be approachable. ... Nobody wants to be talked down to."
Scheibler said, "I think since Mitch got here he understood that we are here for the public and not because of the public. We are here for the community not because of the community and he understood that this is a service organization."
Berens said he has seen many changes law enforcement technology and gear in 25 years. Berens hit the streets carrying a revolver and a can of mace. When he went to the academy, he made the change over to a semi-automatic weapon.
Now officers have a continuum of non-lethal means at their disposal.
Cellphones have also been a gamer-changer, he said. Now citizens can report immediately what they see going on in the community. Most businesses and even many residences have video cameras, which has boosted apprehension rates.
Scheibler said as a sergeant, Berens has trained a new generation of officers who have gone on to be very successful.
"There is a long list of those officers who have learned under Mitch how to be a police officer and how to be a member of this community," Scheibler said.
Berens said he has always enjoyed working in the patrol division because that has kept him connected to the community.
"I think everyone enjoys patrol," Scheibler said. "That's the boots on the ground. That's the first in the door, the last to leave. Those are the guys having the contact with the public every day. When the bad things happen in the community, those are the first guys to respond and are going to deal with that, whatever it might be."
Berens said said he also enjoyed working with other officers.
"Probably the best part of being a police officer is the comradery that you develop among your fellow officers," Berens said.
Scheibler said Berens has been a good supervisor, making good decisions to take care of his fellow officers and to take care of the community.
"Mitch has been a rock for us for 25 years," Scheibler said. "For a quarter of a century, he has been the guy there for us."
The Fraternal Order of Police sponsored a chili feed and raffle fundraiser to assist Berens with the costs of his treatment. He said he was moved by the community support.
"Yeah, that was wonderful. I didn't expect that," he said. "I was overwhelmed by the support of the community."
Berens and his wife, Tisha, were newlyweds, when Berens learned last fall of reoccurrence of his cancer. She is also a cancer survivor.
"It's been tough at times," Berens said, "but she has been a great support for me."
In addition to his hopes to feel better as he continues his cancer treatment, Berens said he hopes to spend time during his retirement fishing and golfing.
Scheibler said, "I want to stress that we are going to miss Mitch. He has done a great job serving this community. He has been a great leader and a great example of what a police officer should do.
"He chose a profession that is hard, long hours, odd hours and stressful and even on top of that his continued battle with cancer. He was a guy that came to work everyday with a positive attitude and has been a shinning example of what we should do in this profession. If I can have 10 more just like him, I'd take them."