[0:01] This is the Farmington feed, bringing [0:03] you information from the city of [0:04] Farmington. [0:05] >> Hi and welcome back to the Farmington [0:06] feed. I'm Karen Hajniki, the city's [0:08] communications specialist, and I'm [0:10] hungry for another episode of The Feed. [0:12] We have two special guests with us [0:13] today. We're introducing some of our [0:15] Farmington faces with another new [0:17] employee speed round. Welcome Claire [0:19] Kennedy and Christina Calderon, both our [0:21] CSOS, which is community service [0:23] officers for the Farmington Police [0:25] Department. Hi and welcome guys. [0:26] >> Hi. So excited to have you on for your [0:29] first time here. Hopefully again after. [0:31] Um but my first question will be to each [0:34] of you. How did you become interested in [0:36] your current position? Claire, how about [0:37] you go first? [0:38] >> I had a school resource officer in high [0:41] school who was a big inspiration to me. [0:43] So I would say that is kind of what [0:45] sparked my interest, especially like [0:47] being a female. You don't see that a [0:50] lot. So [0:51] >> So she was a female? [0:52] >> Yes, she was a female. [0:53] >> Awesome. How about you, Christina? My [0:55] instructors at school really encouraged [0:57] it to join anything we really could like [1:00] the reserves, becoming a cso just to [1:03] give us the boost into what it's going [1:05] to be like becoming an officer [1:06] >> because that's your eventual like [1:08] endgame, right? You guys want to be [1:09] officers? [1:10] >> Awesome. So, are you guys um in school [1:12] right now? [1:13] >> Yes. [1:14] >> Yeah. [1:14] >> Okay. And where do you go to school? [1:15] >> I am at Rasmuson University. I'm [1:18] currently in skills. So, I am done with [1:20] all my coursework. So, [1:21] >> Cool. Well, that feels good, doesn't it? [1:23] >> Yeah. Yeah. [1:23] >> How about you? I go to Riverland [1:25] Community College. Yeah. And I start [1:27] skills in January. [1:29] >> And so how long is that entire process [1:31] for school? [1:32] >> I originally started at St. Thomas. So I [1:35] think mine's a little delayed. I think [1:36] Rasmmanson is like an accelerated [1:38] program. So 18 months. My skills is 6 [1:41] months. So [1:42] >> Okay. [1:43] >> Yeah. [1:43] >> And you? [1:44] >> Yeah. Mine is 2 years. And then since I [1:48] start skills in January, I'll be done in [1:49] May. So just a few months. [1:51] >> That's exciting. [1:53] So, how long have you been with the [1:54] city? [1:55] >> I have been with the city since January. [1:57] So, I think 10 months now. [1:59] >> Oh, yeah. That's coming up. We took a [2:00] picture outside, I think, in the snow. [2:02] >> Yeah. [2:02] >> When you first started. [2:03] >> Uhhuh. [2:04] >> Mhm. [2:04] >> Not that we want any snow right now, but [2:06] >> um and how long have you been? [2:08] >> Uh going on 5 months. [2:09] >> 5 months. Okay. Awesome. So, obviously [2:12] your career aspiration is to become an [2:13] officer, but what else like what other [2:15] things inspired you? Well, going back [2:18] just to my school resource officer, I [2:20] would say that's [2:21] >> probably a position I'll look into some [2:24] years down the road kind of goes into [2:26] like community engagement and stuff like [2:28] that and just being with the kids and [2:30] stuff. [2:31] >> SRO. I think everybody finds interest in [2:33] K9, not knowing how much work it really [2:35] is, but I think that would be cool, too. [2:38] >> Yeah. I mean, cuz that dog's your dog. [2:40] >> Yeah. [2:41] >> 24/7 training. [2:43] >> Yeah. Right. And what about you? [2:44] >> Well, I'd say K9. [2:46] >> Yeah. You want to be? [2:47] >> Yeah. Or eventually join the SWAT. [2:50] >> Oh, okay. [2:50] >> Yeah. I mean, I know there's like so [2:52] many opportunities being in that career. [2:55] So, I don't know. I guess I'm open to [2:57] exploring as well. [2:58] >> For sure. [2:59] >> No, not all people are familiar with [3:00] what a cso is. Can you guys kind of [3:03] explain various parts of your day and [3:05] like what are some of your duties? A lot [3:07] of it is just helping around like [3:09] helping out around the department like [3:11] helping the officers. But we get [3:13] dispatched to animal calls, parking [3:15] violations, vehicle unlock. So if you [3:18] lock your keys in your car, [3:20] >> we can try and come get those out for [3:22] you. Um, we transport, so if one of the [3:25] officers arrests someone, we can bring [3:27] them down to the jail. Oh, [3:28] >> okay. [3:29] >> But we don't have like the arrest powers [3:31] or we can't we can't pull you over. [3:33] Yeah. [3:34] >> We don't go to hot calls or ones that [3:37] could like potentially be dangerous. [3:39] >> Yeah. [3:39] >> It's like you're there for help, right? [3:41] >> Yeah. Yeah. [3:42] >> Um, so what is your favorite part of the [3:45] job? How about we start with you, [3:46] Christina? [3:47] >> Yeah. I like getting to interact with [3:49] the officers and kind of seeing how they [3:52] handle situations. I mean, since we're [3:54] going into that field, it's nice to get [3:56] a little bit of an inside scoop of what [3:58] they do and how they handle it just so [4:00] we're better prepared. I also love the [4:03] animal calls dealing with the dogs. [4:05] >> What happens like on an animal call? [4:07] Like what what's usually? [4:08] >> We get a different different kind of [4:10] calls. We get like barking calls. [4:13] Sometimes a dog is loose, so we'll have [4:15] to go pick it up or [4:16] >> I feel like that happens a lot. [4:18] >> Yeah. Dog bites. [4:19] >> Yeah. [4:20] >> Oh yeah. [4:20] >> Over on Flex Staff, we get some loose [4:22] cows. [4:23] >> Oh yes, I've seen those posts. Anybody [4:25] lose a cow? [4:26] >> Well, we we'll call up the Donnies and [4:29] let them know. Yeah. How do you mangle a [4:31] cow? [4:32] >> We don't let them do it. [4:33] >> Yeah, we just watch. [4:34] >> Okay. [4:35] >> But yeah, [4:35] >> just make sure that it's not into [4:36] traffic and everything. [4:38] >> The animal calls sometimes it's pushing [4:40] animal control. Like we get calls where [4:42] like last night I was wrangling a [4:45] possum. She had a [4:47] Yeah. goose the other day. We're kind of [4:49] like the city's like animal control. [4:52] Well, speaking of that, um, in a [4:54] previous house of mine, we actually had [4:56] a possum like in our tree in our [4:58] backyard and it scared the Jesus out of [5:01] me. I was like walking on the sidewalk [5:03] outside like our fence and it was like [5:05] kind of like hanging over the fence and [5:07] my kids actually saw it first and I was [5:09] like, "Oh my gosh." And it didn't move [5:10] though. That was what's creepy about it. [5:12] >> No, they they are weird. I've never seen [5:14] one so close. They're weird. [5:17] >> I called the city that I lived in at the [5:18] time and they're like, "Well, there's [5:19] nothing we can do if it's not doing [5:20] anything to you." And I was like, "Cool. [5:22] So, it can attack my kid in the [5:24] backyard." Like, but it ended up going [5:26] away. But still, it's kind of they're [5:28] kind of freaky looking. [5:29] >> Yeah, they're weird. [5:30] >> Was that like not expected like for this [5:32] job? Were you like, "Oh, this is [5:33] something I didn't realize I'd have to [5:35] deal with." [5:35] >> Yeah, honestly. But it's fun. Like, it's [5:37] something fun [5:39] >> to do. Like, it's a good story. And if [5:41] it's super dangerous, like obviously if [5:44] this thing is trying to attack me, like [5:46] call in some reinforcements. I don't [5:48] know. like I I don't I wouldn't have [5:50] dealt with it. [5:51] >> What else do you think about your job [5:52] that maybe the residents don't know [5:54] about that you think they should? [5:56] >> I just think people see the police on [5:59] the side of our car and think, "Oh, I'm [6:00] going to get pulled over." Like, we [6:02] can't we can't pull you over. [6:04] >> Your car does look a little different [6:05] like the wrap on your car, right? [6:06] >> It's white. Um and it says community [6:08] service, but [6:09] >> you know, sometimes people don't read [6:10] the whole thing. [6:11] >> Yeah. I would say we can't can't arrest [6:14] you. We can't pull you over. [6:15] >> You're here to help. [6:16] >> Yeah. Exactly. Um, another thing that is [6:20] part of our duties is like we'll help [6:21] out with like our investigations. So, [6:23] we'll bring evidence like to the BCA or [6:27] the Electronic Crimes Unit or things [6:30] like that. [6:30] >> For those that don't know what BCA is, [6:33] >> Bureau of Criminal Apprehension [6:35] >> cuz I didn't. [6:36] >> Yeah. So, they do like all of our like [6:38] DNA stuff. So, we'll bring evidence [6:40] there. [6:41] >> What's something that you do in your job [6:43] that people might not know? I mean, we [6:45] already talked about the animals again, [6:46] but what else? [6:48] >> Community engagement. [6:49] >> Yeah. [6:50] >> Oh, yeah. You know what? I was going to [6:51] bring that up. Community engagement. I [6:53] mean, you guys have been in a lot of our [6:55] events, right? Or the police events. So, [6:57] um, for example, what? Helmet Heroes. [6:59] Um, [7:00] >> yeah. Helmet Heroes, Chill with the Cop, [7:02] National Night Out, the open house. I [7:04] sometimes go to the like party in the [7:06] park events, like movie in the park, and [7:09] I'll just go and like hand out some swag [7:11] and stuff. Those are fun. Those are so [7:13] fun. Yeah, it's my favorite. You get [7:15] connect with the community [7:17] >> and let them know like [7:19] >> you don't need to be afraid of us and [7:20] you can come to us for help. And I love [7:22] that you guys are both women. So then [7:25] you're showing those little girls like [7:26] you can do it too, right? [7:27] >> Yeah. I tell them all the time they're [7:29] like, "Oh," or someone's mom is like, [7:30] "Oh, she wants to be a police officer." [7:32] And I'm like, "You can do it. [7:34] >> You should do it." [7:35] >> Yes. [7:35] >> I recently did trunk and treat with [7:37] Empire. [7:38] >> The amount of little kids that came in [7:40] cop costumes a little bit. Did you get [7:43] pictures with them? [7:44] >> I didn't. I should have. [7:45] >> Okay. Rule number one, Christina [7:48] pictures. [7:49] >> I need them. [7:50] >> Okay. [7:50] >> Um, actually, it's funny cuz I got I [7:53] just posted pictures of the fire [7:54] department at that event, too, cuz they [7:56] were there and as well. And [7:58] >> I always like found Heath Walker, the [8:00] fire marshal. I'm like, [8:01] >> "Where's the pictures? Where's the [8:02] pictures?" [8:03] >> So, always take that selfie, girl. [8:05] >> Yeah. Okay. I remember that. Um there [8:07] was like a a funny like meme or post [8:09] saying like any children that are [8:11] dressed as police officers are now on [8:13] duty [8:14] staffed or whatever. Yeah. Like that's [8:17] >> Yeah, I've seen that. Yeah. [8:19] >> Um and so those community outreach [8:21] events, um do you guys ever do like [8:23] stuff at the schools? Like do you like [8:24] do presentations or whatever? [8:27] >> No, but that would be something that I'd [8:29] be interested in. I've stopped out at [8:31] the school just the other day just to [8:33] check on some of the kids and [8:34] >> Yeah. say hi. I think that'd be fun if [8:37] we could plan something out like a [8:39] safety presentation or [8:40] >> or like if like a boy scout or girl [8:42] scout troop wants something like they [8:44] could reach out and have you guys come [8:45] and do a presentation as well. [8:47] >> Reach out. Let us know. [8:48] >> Yeah, I think the email carington [8:51] mmn.gov, right? Community outreach. [8:54] >> I know your careers haven't been that [8:55] long, but what has inspired you the [8:58] most? Um or who has inspired you the [9:00] most? [9:01] >> I'd say plenty of people. So, my [9:04] instructors at Riverland, they're both [9:06] retired from Fairboat. They really push [9:09] us as students to just get involved and [9:13] we actually do a lot of scenarios with [9:15] different departments. We volunteer for [9:17] stuff. Okay. [9:18] >> So, them, my family has been really [9:21] important. They've all been very [9:22] supportive, which I appreciate. [9:24] >> That's awesome. [9:24] >> And then just the officers and Claire. [9:26] Claire actually trained me so. [9:28] >> Oh, wow. Okay. [9:29] >> Yeah. [9:30] >> Yeah. I would I would agree. The [9:32] officers for sure and just everybody at [9:35] the department as a whole. We have a [9:36] really good team of people. I would say [9:39] all of them, especially our captains and [9:41] sergeants and [9:42] >> chief team has been great to us. My [9:46] family, a lot of people ask me like, [9:48] "Oh, what do your parents think?" And [9:49] they have just been great. If you want [9:51] to do it, you should do it. [9:53] >> Yeah. So, you guys probably have crazy [9:55] schedules. Is there any like regulars [9:58] like your your day shift, your night [10:00] shift? Like how does that work for you [10:01] guys? [10:02] >> We're kind of all over the place with [10:04] school. It's kind of hard to [10:06] >> Yeah. And just like our schedules, too. [10:08] Like making sure cuz we don't want to [10:10] work the same shift cuz we just don't [10:12] need two of us and we only have one cso [10:15] squad. So yeah, it's different. Like [10:18] some I go into work, I'm like, I wonder [10:20] who's working the day. But we kind of [10:22] split it in half. So we're with the day [10:24] and the night. Like it's like 12 to 9 or [10:27] >> Yeah. Typically. [10:28] >> Yeah. Well, cuz Yeah. You have to go to [10:29] class and stuff. [10:30] >> Yeah. Yeah. [10:31] >> How intense is your class schedule? Do [10:33] you guys have like certain number of [10:34] hours that you're doing or [10:36] >> My school work is pretty intense right [10:38] now. I have like six classes. [10:40] >> Wow. [10:40] >> Yeah. On top of work. So, it can be [10:43] >> And this is full time. So, Right. Or no, [10:46] part time. [10:46] >> Oh, part time. Okay. Well, that makes it [10:48] a little easier. [10:49] >> Yeah. [10:50] >> Yeah. And they're really like they're [10:52] really helpful with adjusting to our [10:54] schedules and stuff, but [10:55] >> for sure. [10:56] >> Yeah. My skills is like three days a [10:57] week. So, it's kind of weird. It's like [11:00] Wednesday nights till like 10:00, like [11:03] 6:00 to 10, and then [11:04] >> Friday nights 6:00 to 10:00 and then [11:07] Saturday morning throughout the whole [11:08] day. [11:09] >> Okay. [11:09] >> So, we can work around it. It's just But [11:12] they're pretty good. Like our sergeants [11:14] and captains, they're like, "School [11:15] comes first. Like, that's the priority." [11:17] Yeah. [11:17] >> Right. Cuz that's what you're going to [11:19] school for. You need to you need to be [11:21] in class, [11:22] >> be a good student. Okay. Anything else [11:24] you can think of that you guys want [11:25] people to know about what you guys are [11:27] doing and how CSOS can help them? [11:29] >> I don't know. If you see us, come say [11:31] hi. We usually have stickers and I got [11:33] we got a box of swag in the back. I [11:35] don't know if you saw that. [11:36] >> Is it always in there? [11:37] >> I just I just put it in there. It's [11:40] running out though. I give out too many [11:41] toys. And [11:43] >> but yeah, I would just say come say hi [11:45] if you recognize us. I love when people [11:47] be like, "Oh, I saw you at safety camp [11:49] or I saw you at Chill with the Cop." I'm [11:51] like, "Oh my gosh, you remember me." [11:52] Yeah, [11:53] >> I love it. [11:53] >> Yeah, that's awesome. [11:54] >> Yeah, I would just say come say hi. [11:55] We're here to help. [11:56] >> Yeah, [11:57] >> for sure. All right. Well, I guess [11:59] before um I wrap up, I'll I'm going to [12:01] thank you guys for coming on today and [12:02] hopefully I'll have you back on again [12:04] another time. [12:05] >> We can talk about some more stuff. But [12:06] any of that information on the community [12:09] outreach for the police department. It [12:10] will be on our website. It's at [12:11] farmingtonmn.gov/cect. [12:14] >> And it is the end of Toys for Town [12:16] season. I know we got away with not [12:18] really talking about it yet, but it ends [12:20] with the fabulous community event [12:21] wrapping day. Now, have either of you [12:23] been there? [12:24] >> Okay, so I've been a couple times and it [12:26] is awesome. It will be Saturday, [12:28] December 13th, starting at 9:00 a.m. at [12:30] Farmington High School. People just need [12:31] to show up ready to wrap. You know, [12:33] bringing your family, making a whole [12:34] event. Like, I know there's this one [12:36] family that comes every year. I think [12:38] they've been doing it for over 20 years. [12:39] >> Oh my gosh. [12:40] >> They wrap the craziest things. Like, one [12:42] year they wrapped a bicycle. like [12:44] another year they wrap the biggest [12:46] stuffed animal like one of those big [12:47] ones, you know. [12:48] >> Um but they come every year and they [12:51] make it a family event like that's on [12:52] their calendar and they deliver gifts. [12:54] Now everybody doesn't have to deliver [12:56] gifts cuz you guys will and fire and [12:58] SWAT and all them will deliver too. [13:00] >> Um but it does make a difference. So [13:03] >> if you have any last minute donations um [13:05] you can stop by the police department [13:06] during their lobby hours which are [13:08] Monday through Thursday from 8:00 to [13:09] 4:00. Otherwise we hope to see everyone [13:11] on Saturday. Right. [13:12] >> Yes. That concludes this month's episode [13:14] of the Farmington Feed. Thank you for [13:16] listening. We look forward to connecting [13:17] with residents with this podcast. If you [13:19] have any feedback, guest requests, or [13:21] ideas, email me at [13:22] communications@faringtonmn.gov. [13:24] Don't forget to subscribe to the [13:25] Farmington feed wherever you like to get [13:27] your podcasts.