Spring 2023 Hometown Messenger

Police Captain Chris Dellwo

Aquatics Supervisor Katelyn Meyer

Permit Coordinator Gia Eley

Permit Coordinator Kelly Buska

Meet the city’s 2022 employee honorees Congratulations to four outstanding City of Shakopee employees who recently earned the following annual honors:

Year Eley has been with the city for six years, previously working as a permit technician for the city of Westminster, Colo Buska has been with the city for four and a half years, previ ously working as a project manager at a fam ily-owned architecture firm in Hopkins Planning and Development Director Michael Kerski, Eley and Buska’s supervisor, said they are both fair, consistent and hard-working “They resolve issues before they become problems I always receive compliments from users about how helpful and positive they are,” Kerski said “Even during covid, some how, they kept all the city the permits mov ing without any issues” Eley’s favorite part of her job is working with such a supportive department “Truly the best coworkers anyone could ever ask for!” she said “But my favorite part of my job duties is being able to help with and help change different processes to make them more efficient internally and for our customers” Buska echoed Eley’s sentiments about their coworkers “They are a great bunch and the main reason I enjoy coming to work every day,”Buska said “I also love being part of a team that allows us to engage in new technologies that are use ful not only for the city but for the citizens”

Meyer, who received the Manager of the Year Award, has worked for the city at least part time since the age of 15 when she first became a lifeguard She’s been a full-time employee for four and a half years According to Meyer’s supervisor, Program ming and Services Manager Sherry Dvorak, Meyer has a “can-do” attitude and “I see you” approach to both her staff and the public “Katelyn has served as a mentor and life coach to the City of Shakopee’s lifeguard community for 16+ years as a leader in the department,” Dvorak said “The responsibil ity to protect life offers the greatest burden of accountability, and under Katelyn’s lead ership, her commitment to ensuring staff is highly trained and responsive has no doubt prevented tragedies from occurring in our aquatic spaces” Meyer said her favorite part of her job is the people she gets to work alongside “My coworkers are like a family and getting to work on such a creative and collaborative team is a blast,” she said “I also love getting to work with the high school and college staff Being able to train and mentor them, then watch them grow up and mature, is very rewarding” Eley and Buska, who are both permit coor dinators, were named the Employees of the

■ Police Captain Chris Dellwo : 2022 Administrator’s Leadership Award ■ Aquatics Supervisor Katelyn Meyer : 2022 Manager of the Year ■ Permit Coordinators Gia Eley and Kelly Buska : 2022 Employees of the Year Dellwo, who received the Administrator’s Leadership Award, has worked for the city for 28 years and was previously with the Coon Rapids Police Department He plans to retire this year Police Chief Jeff Tate said Dellwo is honest, fair, respectful and always puts the best interest of the community first “Captain Dellwo has managed the asset for feiture program for the department for the last decade and never had issues with his paperwork or managing the legal and audit ing requirements that come with asset for feitures,” Tate said “Twin Cities Summer Jam goes off smoothly every year in large part due to Chris’s efforts to manage traffic and officers inside the venue” One of Dellwo’s favorite aspects of his job is the opportunity to have a positive influence on others

NEWS & NOTES SUBSCRIBE TO THE SHAKOPEE DIGEST Want to stay in the know about city projects, events and other impor tant news for residents? Subscribe to the Shakopee Digest, our monthly email newsletter informing residents about the month ahead The newsletter is emailed at the beginning of each month To subscribe, visit www.ShakopeeMN.gov/subscribe Follow the prompts and on the list of subscription preferences, tick “Shakopee Digest” Having trouble? Contact Communications Manager Amanda McKnight at amcknight@ShakopeeMN.gov

NEW EMPLOYEES JOIN CITY STAFF Join us in welcoming these new employees to the City of Shakopee: ■ Neal Aho , Maintenance Supervisor, 12/12/2022 ■ Andrea Harrell , Grants and Special Projects Coordinator, 11/21/2022 ■ Benjamin Lacher , Police Officer, 12/12/2022 ■ Matthew Ruehling , PW Maintenance Operator, 1/2/2023

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