Celebrating Chaplaincy Impact by Leo Suazo

Rocky Mountain Police Chaplains would like to celebrate with you one of our Chaplains that serves selflessly and wholeheartedly.  Leo Suazo serves as a Chaplain for Park County Sheriff’s Office and the Platte Canyon Protection District. Park County is a large county covering over 2,200 square miles, and can take 45 minutes (or more during the winter) running code to reach from one side of the county to the other. In a rural area, with a small department, covering a large geography, deputies find themselves working alone much of the time with backup far away. As you can imagine this can be stressful in itself, not to mention many residents move to “the country” to get away from people and don’t want to be bothered, especially by the police. Like many agencies that we serve with, Park County has suffered tragedy of many kinds within the department and in the community.

Five years ago, they lost one of their own in the line of duty, Nate Carrigan. While this is devastating at any department, Nate had grown up in Park County and was a beacon of hope and life to those serving with Park County SO, to the youth he coached in sports, as a family man, and to so many friends. Leo has been there along the way to support, encourage, and care for the individuals on the call with Nate, the family/friends who grieve, and to offer the hope of Christ.

Last fall, Park County was hit again with the severe injury to one of their Deputies who was hit head on in an automobile accident. The Deputy is still recovering and we pray for his complete recovery. During the incident, Leo called chaplains to assist with the immediate needs of the department and family members. In the days following, Leo called upon other chaplains to assist with helping debrief the Deputies, Fire, EMS, Animal Control and Dispatch personnel that responded to the call. Leo did an amazing job at helping each person heal from their moral injuries and continues to support them.

Over the years, Leo has also established Bible Studies for Fire and LE personnel, responded to countless needs in the community, and supports other chaplains in their personal/ministry journeys. He served over three decades as an Officer in a rural context and upon retiring wanted to continue to give back to continue supporting his extended family. His wife Janell also serves and supports the LE family. Janell is an amazing godly woman (and amazing hunter by the way) who supports Leo in the many hours he is away caring for others. I can only imagine the countless miles they have put on their vehicles, the banquet of meals prepared and served to others, the hours spent in the hospital/restaurants/offices caring for others, serving their local church, and relationships grown over talking about cars, BBQ, hunting, and their personal relationship with God. Leo and Janell are an example of who we want to be as Chaplains, care givers, and leaders in our community.

We hope Leo’s story, and there is so much more, serves as an encouragement to you. Chaplaincy in the urban context can look different from a rural county. The resources, personnel, volume of calls, and other circumstances fluctuate from city to city or from county to county. However, the people in every place matter to God. No matter the context God has you in, He can use you and the network around you. Just as God has used Leo and Janell, may God richly bless you as you serve the Lord and as you serve those who serve us.