Trooper Demny from Hart post receives outstanding achievement award.

Trooper Demny

Trooper Demny from Hart post receives outstanding achievement award.

HART — Trooper Matt Demny, a graduate of the 122nd Trooper Recruit School assigned to the Michigan State Police (MSP) Hart Post, has received the Community Policing Outstanding Achievement Award.

Demny received the award “for his outstanding efforts to make a positive impact in the lives of people in his community,” states an MSP press release. Col. Joe Gasper, director of the MSP, recently recognized his efforts during a virtual ceremony.

“Trooper Demny is looked to as a true leader in his community where he has worked tirelessly to build solid relationships with first responders, businesses, organizations, and community members alike. He also has a noticeable presence in the Mason County school system through programs he participates in including “Read with a Hero” and a charity dodgeball game called “Kids versus Cops.”

Recognizing a financial need within the Pere Marquette Fire Department, Trooper Demny took it upon himself to coordinate a community grant between Walmart and the fire department, which hosts a detachment of the Hart Post, that resulted in a $1,000 grant for facility upgrades. In December, Trooper Demny spearheaded an effort to purchase a swing set for the children of Grant Township firefighter Michael Buitendorp, who had tragically died on duty the month before.

During the holidays, when Trooper Demny became aware of leftover meals at a local church, he enlisted the assistance of the Mason County Sheriff’s Office, and together they coordinated a meal drop-off to an unemployed Army veteran and his disabled child, whom he had previously met while on patrol.

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