Nash takes helm of Polson Police Department
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POLSON — The City of Polson has a new police chief: Wade Nash. Nash served as a Polson Police Department sergeant since 2007 but has been in law enforcement for 13 years.
Nash grew up in Eugene, Ore., with a logging background. After attending Linn-Benton Community College in Albany, Ore., he moved to Montana in 1997 and started working for Joe Geldrich in the Lake County Jail. He spent a year and a half working in the jail and then was hired by former Police Chief Ron Buzzard, Nash explained. At that time there were more training opportunities in the Lake County Sheriff’s Office so Nash went back and hired on as a Lake County Deputy. He was assigned to the Northwest Drug Task Force for three years, partnered with Chief Craige Couture of Tribal Law Enforcement. Promoted to patrol sergeant, Nash continued there until Polson Police Chief Doug Chase recruited him to come back to the PPD in 2007.
Nash credited Chase with support and guidance in his career and praised Chase’s focus on training for his officers as well as leaving Nash with one of the most professional departments in Montana.
“Doug was very beneficial to me as far as my career but also in my personal life,” Nash stated. “He’s very positive.”
He also thanked his loving and supportive wife, who was born and raised here. The Nashs have two children, a 6-year-old boy and a little girl who will be 3 in February.
Besides leading a professional team of officers, the new chief’s goals for the department include getting more involved with the schools and the students, maybe eventually edging into a program similar to the School Resource Officer program. With a larger department and very qualified people, Nash plans to look into funding.
He would also like to implement a park watch program, working with the Polson Parks Department and the community. People come to Polson to enjoy their families and Polson’s parks, Nash explained, and sometimes have to deal with heavily intoxicated folks in a park where kids are playing nearby.
Although he acknowledges it will be a challenge, Nash wants to work with the Polson City Manager and the City Commissioners and make some parks alcohol-free.
He would also like a field-training officer for the City of Polson. This officer would keep records on training, implement training programs and seek out training opportunities with other law enforcement agencies on the reservation.
“I want to provide the service this community deserves. This area is just truly blessed,” Nash noted, adding that anybody with ideas for improvement should approach the department.
“We will definitely strive for quality of communication and teamwork within our office and out of our office as well.”
