Published November 09, 2009 12:14 am - JEFFERSON — Small-town life suits Steve Febel just fine and his love for Jefferson has kept him living and working here for most of his life.
To protect & to serve Steve Febel grew up playing football and basketball for Jefferson — and he’s spent almost two decades keeping the peace as his hometown’s police chief
PAMELA E. GRAN Star Beacon
JEFFERSON — Small-town life suits Steve Febel just fine and his love for Jefferson has kept him living and working here for most of his life.
Febel, a 1976 graduate of Jefferson Area High School, continues to serve this small village as head of its police department, a position he has held since August 1991.
“Jefferson has been an enjoyable place to work,” said Febel recently as he sat behind his desk at the police station on the corner of Jefferson and Market streets. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
Febel actually grew up in Eagleville, a tiny hamlet just a stone’s throw from the western boundary of Jefferson, but the village has been his home for many years.
Febel’s journey to becoming police chief began in 1979 when well-known local personality Rich Brainard convinced him to join Jefferson’s auxiliary force. He then underwent training at the police academy in Conneaut in order to be placed on the department’s regular roster. The academy at that time was put on by the Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Department, Febel said.
A binder several inches thick in Febel’s office holds the dozens of certificates that evidence the subsequent training he has undergone in the years since those early days. One wall of his office is covered with plaques and other awards he has earned throughout his career.
A collection of 140 police department patches Febel has spent 30 years amassing, once adorned an adjacent wall, but the patches have since been relegated to a file cabinet drawer to cut down on clutter, Febel said.
Febel credits the influence of his grandfather for his strong work ethic. It was his grandfather who often told the future police officer that if something is worth doing, it’s worth doing right.
Over the course of his career, there have been a great many character-building influences, both within law enforcement and outside the field, according to Febel. One-time county sheriff William Johnston helped to mold him into the man he is today, Febel said, as did Ken Johnson, the chief of the department when Febel joined the force.
“They both taught me a lot,” Febel said.
Another man who had valuable lessons for Febel was the late local political icon, Stan Nizen, who served multiple terms as mayor of this small village of 3,500.
“He taught me how to save money, and the value of a buck … what you can really get for your buck,” Febel said.
Nizen did this by always asking that Febel take the time to truly consider if what he was asking to get for his department was something that was actually needed.
“When I really thought about it, there were times that I was able to say maybe this can wait until another time or until there is more money,” Febel said.
By the same token, when there was justification and as long as Febel did his research and found the best possible price for the purchase, Nizen readily approved the expenditure.
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