My name is Garrison Reekers and I would like to express my support for Ted Paxton as the next Sheriff for Benton County.

I worked for 31 years in law enforcement, the last 15 plus years were with the Benton County Sheriff ¢â‚¬â„¢s Office prior to leaving in January of 2022.

My career allowed me to work in the Military, City Police Departments and Sheriff ¢â‚¬â„¢s Offices. I am the current Safety Director for neighboring Tama County but still reside in Benton County. I am offering my support for Ted because I know how important experience in administration is for an elected official.

As Sheriff, there is a responsibility to manage several employees including admin staff, dispatchers, jail staff and deputies. With many employees also comes a large budget to manage. This can be a daunting task for anyone that has experience with employees and budgeting and an even greater task for someone that has little to no experience in that area.

As a Benton County Deputy and specifically when I was a detective, I worked closely with the Vinton Police Department and Chief Paxton. Ted had a commanding but not overwhelming presence that made working together easy on several investigations and placed justice for the victim not about credit for anyone working the case. I think he is a leader that will promote cooperation with other agencies and brings a long and diverse background in law enforcement to support his goals and objectives.

Now having to manage a budget with my current position, I now know the importance of electing someone with experience in this area. I had previous experience running a small business that taught me some important aspects but that is different from running a budget under a government entity and my current budget pales in comparison with the Sheriff ¢â‚¬â„¢s Department budget and personnel.

As a resident and a taxpayer, I am looking for someone with experience in handling budgets, personnel and managing a law enforcement agency. Only one of our candidates has this experience and these are the reasons I encourage you to support Ted Paxton as our next Benton County Sheriff.

Garrison Reeker