A fellow facebook follower from Lowell, IN., stopped and visited one of our many county parks yesterday, Pier Cove on Lake Michigan and had the opportunity to meet Reserve Deputy Tyler Horton as he was on duty patrolling and community policing. She said it was great talking to him and she shared with us this picture of Deputy Horton and their family dog, Mack. Thank you for sharing with us!

The Allegan County Sheriff’s Office is continuing to ask for any additional information regarding Steven Eugene Chandler.

Steven was last heard from on May 26th when he called his family and told them that he was borrowing someone’s phone, believed that he was in Lansing, and did not give them any further information. The family stated that while he said he was okay, his voice led them to believe that he may not have been.

Steven traveled from Minnesota to Chicago via Greyhound bus arriving on May 22nd at the downtown Greyhound station in Chicago. His ticket was bought to continue on to the 95th St station, however Greyhound officials stated he never got on that bus. The family believes that Steven may have found a ride from someone in Chicago to Michigan.

At this time, the Allegan County Sheriff’s Office is asking for any information about Steven’s whereabouts or who may have given him a ride back to Michigan. If you have information, please call 269-673-0500, x4219 or Silent Observer at 1.800.554.3633 .

Wednesday Spotlight from the desk of Sheriff Frank Baker:

This group of girls from Steeby Elementary in Wayland conducted a stuffed animal drive for their Girls on the Run Community Project and donated them to our Office for the officers to give out to children. Thank you to all the girls that participated and for thinking of others, we certainly do appreciate your donation!

As we are in day 3 of 5 potentially HOT SUMMER DAYS with temperatures reaching up near or in the 90's! We wanted to share important information about heat exposure. Please make sure to drink plenty of water today if you are outside for prolonged periods of time. Check on your elderly neighbors. Pets should also have plenty of water to drink if they are outside.

With temperatures heating up this weekend, we want to make sure everyone has a fun, enjoyable time at the beach or on the lake.

Here are some tips on making that happen:

• Swim in designated areas.
• Always swim with a buddy; do not allow anyone to swim alone. Use the buddy system!
• Never leave a young child unattended near water and do not trust a child’s life to another child; teach children to always ask permission to go near water.
• Have young children or inexperienced swimmers wear U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets around water, but do not rely on life jackets alone.
• Even if you do not plan on swimming, be cautious around natural bodies of water. Cold temperatures, currents and underwater hazards can make a fall into these bodies of water dangerous.
• If you go boating, wear a life jacket! Most boating fatalities occur from drowning.
• Avoid alcohol use. Alcohol impairs judgment, balance and coordination; affects swimming and diving skills; and reduces the body’s ability to stay warm.

*Also, stay hydrated with water, check on your elderly neighbors and pets too.

Wednesday Spotlight from the desk of Sheriff Frank Baker:

The #Justsaythanks Law Enforcement Appreciation Dinner,
Sponsored by the Wayland Area Chamber of Commerce, was held last week.

This was truly a wonderful event and the Sheriff's Office would like to recognize the Wayland Area Chamber of Commerce, Executive Director Denise Behm, the Chamber Board, the Chamber Ambassadors, and all the Chamber members and volunteers that made this happen. We appreciate all the hard work that went into this dinner and want to thank you for this awesome event.

We also want to thank the businesses that provided the meal, the deserts, and the gift cards. The food was amazing and the Centennial Barn is a great venue and we want to also thank them!

Our Deputies felt very honored to be a part of this event. We are fortunate to have so much community support here in Allegan County.