In a special private ceremony last night (Tuesday), members of the Arcadia American Legion Post 694 were joined by their state leadership, nearly the entire staff from the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office along with local police officers, county supervisors and the family and close friends of Carroll County Sheriff Doug Bass as he was honored as the Iowa Law Enforcement Officer of the year. The tone of the evening mirrored the traits that garnered Bass this recognition as it was filled with respect, camaraderie and a large dose of very good humor. And Commander, Jim Myrtue, summed it up best when he detailed a recent conversation at a local business that highlighted the fact that there aren’t a whole lot of people in the county who don’t know Doug Bass.
There were many members of the audience that congratulated Bass and told stories of the good times they had together; the times they had met him in the course of his duties and they all compared notes on his ability to tell a great story. But Chris Toft of Arcadia wanted to thank Bass for not only doing his job, but for doing it in a way that set an example for the people of the county.
The leadership from the Iowa American Legion, Commander Jim Peterson, 8th District Commander Perry Green and Adjutant John Derner all expressed how impressed they were with the way the application process was handled by this post and how this exemplified their respect for Bass. Commander Myrtue, Finance Officer Ralph Lampman and Chaplain Ray Meyers enlisted the assistance of Chief Deputy Ken Pingrey to fill out the daunting 24-page application, but they also had Legion members that personally drove the paperwork to Des Moines to make sure it was filled out properly. And it was a tremendous effort to keep this secret a surprise to a very touched Sheriff Bass who said they really don’t know how much this means to him.
But some of the most memorable comments came from a group of Bass’ strongest supporters, his wife Pat, his children and his grandchildren.
Bass will be honored again as the Iowa Law Enforcement Officer of the Year at the American Legion state convention in July at Coralville. He is also now eligible for the American Legion National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year award, which will be decided in the next couple of weeks and awarded in August.
