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Orland Park Police hold promotions, badge‑pinnings and awards at biannual ceremony
Summary
The village recognized officers promoted to sergeant and lieutenant, swore in new officers and presented Grand Cordon, Exceptional Service, Life‑Saving and Officer and Civilian of the Year awards to department members.
The Orland Park Police Department held its biannual awards and pinning ceremony during the Committee of the Whole meeting, honoring promotions, new officers and several departmental awards.
Dave O'Connor, chair of the Fire and Police Commission, introduced the commission and described its role in recruitment, promotion and discipline; he said the department is "extraordinary" and commended officers' professionalism. The department swore in multiple officers and promoted personnel through ranks including sergeant, lieutenant and commander.
Notable recognitions announced by department staff included a Grand Cordon award for Officer Patrick Gallagher for investigative work that yielded multiple theft and aggravated‑identity‑theft charges; a Grand Cordon to members of the Targeted Response Unit (Sergeant Casey Wall, Detective Dan Livingston and Officers Michael Rafferty, Jan Krastiniak and Thomas Healy) for enforcement activity; an Exceptional Service award to Investigator Miranda Nickel for follow‑up work on a child abuse investigation; Life‑Saving awards to Officer Mallory Genozak and to Officers Cody Gusties and Michael Davalski for emergency response that preserved lives; Civillian Employee of the Year to telecommunicator Donna Luna; and Officer of the Year to Officer Brian Prestea.
The chief and commission chair led the oaths of office; family members and colleagues participated in pinning ceremonies. The ceremony closed with congratulations to the promoted and newly sworn officers.
Why it matters: the ceremony underscores staffing, promotion pipelines and public recognition practices within the municipal police department. The acknowledgements also detail operational successes and interagency cooperation described in staff remarks.
Next steps: no board action was required; the village will incorporate promotions and personnel updates into department staffing records and follow normal HR processes for rank, compensation and assignments.
