Chat with the Chief in Buffalo Grove gets residents talking to new Buffalo Grove Police Chief Brian Budds ‘I certainly get a lot out of it and I’m confident that the residents get a lot out of it too’
Early this month, community members turned out to a local bakery to converse with Buffalo Grove police Chief Brian Budds, bringing up such issues as mental health awareness and mental wellness resources.
Budds said the informal sessions offer him the opportunity, “as a newer chief, to meet folks and hear their input, thoughts…different things.
“That’s what these are all about, it’s just again, sharing experiences and ideas and us, as a group, as a community, building on what Buffalo Grove can be in the future, and doing that together, that’s why these are so valuable, these events.
Budds took over as top cop in November after longtime Chief Steven Casstevens retired.
The second in Budds’ “Chat with the Chief” event series was held upstairs at Deerfields Bakery on March 22. Refreshments were provided to attendees during the two-hour Wednesday morning event and they could take turns sitting at a table to converse with Budds.
“We do programs with the police department and I wanted to meet him and introduce myself,” said attendee Janice Kellman, of Buffalo Grove, head of community engagement and programming with the Vernon Area Public Library in Lincolnshire.
Chat with the Chief launched last December and rotates to different hosting venues around Buffalo Grove.
Budds said he plans to host four to six similar events per year with the next Chat with the Chief planned for May or June.
Amy Cholewa, Buffalo Grove Police Department crime prevention officer with the community relations unit, said the Chat with the Chief series has been “gaining traction.”
“It’s just a good event,” Cholewa said, describing the meet-and-greets as a “nice relaxing setting for the community to come and just mingle with the police department.”
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Cholewa said attendees were welcome to ask the chief questions voice their concerns.
Budds came from the west suburban Western Springs Police Department after working there for more than two decades. In Western Springs, among department roles, Budds was deputy police chief for 10 years and chief of police for six years.
Since starting in Buffalo Grove, Budds said, “It’s been an incredible journey so far in the five months I’ve been here.”
Budds said the chat series, “is one of our signature things we’ve done” to help build “community relationships, community engagement.”
“I certainly get a lot out of it and I’m confident that the residents get a lot out of it too,” the chief said.
Vernon Township Trustee Sheila Sebor, of Buffalo Grove, was appointed to a two year term on the Vernon Township Community Mental Health Board. She attended the chat with Budds, bringing up the subject of mental health.
“One of the things I wanted to talk about with the new head of the Buffalo Grove police [is] what kind of services they currently have and what kind of services are they looking for as we put together our program for mental health care services for the community,” Sebor said.
Al Dorfman, a Buffalo Grove resident for 36 years, hopes to improve mental health awareness and disability services within Vernon Township as a member, also, of the township’s mental health board.
“There’s a stigma,” Dorfman said. “There’s a dearth of services, a lot of times people have to wait months to see a psychiatrist and part of our mission is to try to improve that.”
Budds confirmed that Buffalo Grove first responders assisted at the Highland Park July 4 parade mass shooting last year. Counseling services have been offered to people impacted by that incident.
“It’s been on our mind, obviously,” Budds said about community safety, wellness and security.
The chief went on to explain that the parade route for the June 4 Buffalo Grove Pride Parade is being finalized, and is taking into account what happened in Highland Park.
“Lessons learned from Highland Park, nobody could have predicted that, obviously, because Highland Park did a great job of planning for that and having sufficient resources,” he said.
“Our officers did play a big role in the Highland Park incident and the task force and that was a terrible situation,” Budds said. “And they’re still healing as a community as we are, too, with the tragedy we had late last year.”
The chief referred to the November day when Buffalo Grove officers responded to what became a crime scene on Acacia Terrace. Five members of the Kisliak family were found dead inside the home — three adults and two children. The deaths were later said to be a murder-suicide after months of documented domestic turmoil.
“That was my third week here when I experienced that,” Budds said of the Kisliak deaths.
The chief said the community is still recovering from that tragedy.
“Our officers, you know, we talk about it, it’s part of the recovery process, the healing process for us, for those that had to go into the scene,” Budds said.
Budd complimented his department, saying he’s surrounded by “very talented individuals.”
“The department is continuing to do great things,” he said.
Karie Angell Luc is a freelancer.