Photo from left to right: Mayor Michael Fressola, Kyle Rickvalsky, Matthew Walaszek, Michael Steffen, Daniel Wehrle, Thomas Chant and Chief Brian Klimakowski.
On Monday, September 9, 2013, the Manchester Township Police sworn-in three new full-time police officers and two Class II Special Officers. Kyle Rickvalsky, Matthew Walaszek, and Michael Steffen 2nd, were sworn in by Manchester Mayor Michael Fressola, making them the newest full-time police officers to join the Manchester Township Police force. Daniel Wehrle Jr. and Thomas Chant were sworn-in as Class II Special Officers.
Kyle Rickvalsky, a 2009 graduate of Southern Regional High School attended Ocean County College where he received an Associate’s Degree in General Studies. In 2011, Rickvalsky attended the Ocean County Police Academy and upon graduating worked as a Class II Special Officer with the Long Beach Township Police Department. Matthew Walaszek, a 2009 graduate of Manchester Township High School attended Ocean County College where he earned 65 credits towards his Criminal Justice degree. In 2011, he attended the Ocean County Police Academy, graduating in May of 2012. Prior to being hired by Manchester Township, Walaszek worked as a Class II Special Officer with both the Point Pleasant Beach Police Department and the Lakehurst Borough Police Department. Michael Steffen 2Nd, a 2006 graduate of Bordentown High School attended Mercer County College and the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey where he graduated in 2010 on the Dean’s List with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and a concentration in Forensics. Steffen was most recently employed as a Mercer County Park Ranger. Steffen, who has no prior police experience, will began his law enforcement training on September 10th as a police recruit in the Ocean County Police Academy. This challenging training will last approximately five months and will culminate with graduation in February.
Daniel Wehrle, Jr. is a 2003 graduate of Christian Brothers Academy and 2007 graduate of Drew University. After graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree, Wehrle worked with numerous companies in sales & marketing in New York City prior to being hired by the Point Pleasant Beach Police Department in 2012. He attended the Ocean County Police Academy earlier this year and upon graduating worked as Class II Special Officer with the Point Pleasant Beach Police Department. Wehrle will in the same capacity with the Manchester Township Police. Thomas Chant, a 2006 graduate of Toms River High School South, graduated from the University of Delaware in 2010 with a Bachelor’s degree in Communications. He, too, attended the Ocean County Police Academy earlier this year and upon graduating worked as a Class II Special Officer with the Seaside Heights Police Department. Chant, who had been hired full-time in July of this year by the Camden County Metro Police Department, choose to discontinue his training in order to take the Class II Special Officer position with the Manchester Township Police, a demonstration of his desire to join our agency and serve the residents of Manchester Township.
The hiring ceremony took place in the civic center at the Manchester Municipal Complex and was attended by several members of each officer’s families, as well as Manchester Police Chief Brian Klimakowski, Council President Craig Wallis, Business Administrator Elena Zsoldos, CFO Diane Lapp, and numerous other township employees and police personnel.
The new officers will be assigned to a rigorous twelve week Field Training Program, where they will be taught and mentored by seasoned officers prior to venturing out on their own.
Photo from left to right: Mayor Michael Fressola, Kyle Rickvalsky, Matthew Walaszek, Michael Steffen, Daniel Wehrle, Thomas Chant and Chief Brian Klimakowski.