By James Massara
CCN News Director
BUCYRUS — After 37 years on duty, one Crawford County Sheriff’s Office deputy is hanging up his badge and turning in his cruiser keys.
Deputy Tim Ley signed off duty for the final time Monday afternoon after serving Crawford County for nearly four decades. Ley now looks forward to a fulfilling retirement.
Ley began his life in law enforcement in 1981 after being hired by then-Sheriff Ronnie Shawber. Ley spent the first nine years on the job as a road officer, before transitioning to acting as the DARE officer.
He said working with Bucyrus Police Department Captain John Stanley to bring the DARE program to all six Crawford County schools was a highlight of his career. Ley acted as DARE officer for 17 years from 1991-2008.
“I really liked working with all the kids in the whole county,” Ley said. “It was, overall, a very rewarding experience.”
Ley’s next challenge came when Shawber named Ley as the evidence and property officer for the department. Ley said he was honored when Sheriff Scott Kent kept him in the position after Kent was elected.
“It was rewarding that he thought I did a good enough job that he kept me in it,” Ley said. “It was rewarding that both sheriffs thought that I was good to do the job with integrity.”
The evidence and property officer oversees the handling the property of the sheriff’s office and maintaining evidence that comes into the office from crime scenes.
Ley spent the past six weeks training his replacement, Deputy Jeff Windbigler.
He also was trusted with the task of writing grants for the sheriff’s office. In five years, Ley wrote grants that brought $300,000 to the department. Ley said the trust that showed by the sheriff to have Ley perform that task was built over many years.
“We spent 18 years on the road at the same time,” Kent said. “That gave us the opportunity to build a friendship both professionally and personally.”
Ley said it was all about learning to work with other.
“We knew how each other would react to situations, so we both knew how to work together in the office and on the road,” Ley said. “It’s so important to return safely to our families and a big part of that is having each other’s backs, and I know I can count on Scott and others to have mine and I hope they all thought they could count on me.”
“We also like the same music,” Kent interjected with a grin.
Ley then added that he found a missing CD of the Rolling Stones Greatest Hits that he had misplaced in his cruiser and was happy to be able to leave with.
Kent said Ley was an employee that is difficult to come by.
“He had predictable attendance, which is rare anymore,” Kent said. “No matter what he had on his plate, any task he was given always got done timely and professionally.”
Ley said he enjoyed working with everyone he had the opportunity to work with over his tenure.
Up next for Ley is a short-lived vacation before returning to public service in a different fashion.
“I’m going to have five-and-a-half months of R and R,” Ley said. “I’m going to have family time and relaxation time.”
Beginning Jan. 1, Ley will begin his term as a Crawford County Commissioner. He won the republican primary in May and does not have a democratic opponent in the general election.
Ley also is the board president for the Colonel Crawford Local Schools Board of Education.
He will begin attending commissioner meetings this week to start to gain a deeper feel of the job.
“I’m really excited for no more getting up at 6:15 a.m.,” Ley said with a laugh.