Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Sweet Home’s newest patrol officer is not a stranger to the Sweet Home Police Department.
But now Carolyn Dimick is getting paid to come to work.
Dimick, 22, is one of Sweet Home’s first two participants in the department’s Explorers program, which introduces teenagers to police work by providing them with training and volunteer opportunities in the department.
A 2001 graduate of Sweet Home High School, Dimick attended Linn-Benton Community College for two years and then Western Oregon University where she earned her bachelor of arts degree in law enforcement with a minor in psychology.
Dimick is the daughter of Randa and Jerry Ekleberry of Lebanon and John and Janiece Dimick of Sweet Home. She has two older sisters and one younger brother.
Dimick grew up in Sweet Home, though she lived in Portland between the third grade and high school.
A youngster, Dimick said, she knew she wanted to do something in law enforcement.
She joined Police Department’s Explorer Program her senior year, the first year the program was offered.
?I really enjoyed it,? Dimick said. ?It just made me sure this is what I wanted to go into.?
Sweet Home hired Dimick about a month after graduating from Western, and she returned to Monmouth to attend the Police Academy. She graduated from the academy on Sept. 16 and has been training with Officer Jason Ogden, who runs the current Explorer program. She will continue training with Ogden and Officer John Trahan through the end of the year.
?It?s really comfortable,? Dimick said. ?I enjoy everyone I work with, which makes it easier.?
The department has only a few employees she didn?t already know, Dimick said. That makes it ideal for starting off her career.
?Probably the first time I had any experience with law enforcement, I started with Search and Rescue with Linn County,? Dimick said.
Dimick is enjoying her job, she said.
?I really enjoy meeting people from every walk of life known to man. You get a wide view of human life.?
She said she enjoys patrol duty right now, she said. Every day, every situation is different.
Down the line, Dimick would like to become a fish and wildlife officer, she said.
I?ll be able to put both my loves into one box – all the cop stuff and all the outdoorsy stuff.?
The Explorer program has paid off for the department thus far, Police Chief Bob Burford noted.
?Carolyn was one of our original Explorers,? Burford said. ?Of the two original Explorers that completed the program, both are working in full-time law enforcement.?
The other original Explorer was Josh Marvin, who is now working for Linn County Sheriff?s Office.
Sweet Home Police Department is starting a new Explorer process and seeking applicants, Burford said. Explorers must be 16 to 21 years old and enrolled in school with a minimum GPA of 2.0.
Prospective Explorers must be interested in any aspect of law enforcement and of good moral character, Burford said.
For more information about the Explorer Program, call 367-5181.