Overland’s Finest are not Invulnerable

No matter how well they play that role

As we’ve talked about here before, Overland has a great bunch of officers on our Police force. Men and women in blue who put themselves on the line every hour of every day so we don’t have to. A huge portion of what makes Overland a great place to live are the efforts of these professionals. Though we tend to think of them this way, police officers are not indestructible. They are subject to the same injuries, illnesses and hardships that we all are.

Officer Jeff Scheffer

A few weeks ago I learned about an officer who has had it tough recently. Jeff Scheffer has served on the Overland police force for 17 years as both a beat officer and a detective. I’ve heard many people refer to him with respect and appreciation including some officer Scheffer has had to take into custody over the years.

Officer Scheffer has been an asset for Overland. He’s been awarded 16 Chief’s recognition letters, named officer of the month 6 times in his tenure and has received recognition from the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis where he served as a member from 1998 to 2006.

Officer Scheffer is a highly educated professional who holds a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice, another in Psychology and is currently working on his Masters in Criminology. He’s a qualified P.P.C.T defensive tactics instructor, and a Missouri certified fire investigator. He’s completed many training programs including Medico-legal Death investigations, both Reid and Wicklander-Zulawski Interview and Interrogation programs, and is trained in forensic archeology. Jeff Scheffer by all accounts is a fine officer, a productive detective and a nice guy.

Melanie, Officer Scheffer’s wife of 13 years, told me about a time when he responded to an apartment fire call. Arriving before the fire department he investigated the scene to ensure no one was in imminent danger. When Officer Scheffer discovered the fire in the laundry room he looked for a way to bring it under control. Armed with the only thing available, a box of Tide detergent, Officer Scheffer successfully extinguished the flames before the fire department arrived.

To some, using laundry soap to fight a fire might sound a bit odd, but detergent is actually a key ingredient in the fire fighting foams you see used at airports (and the AFFF foam we had when I served in the U.S. Navy). His quick thinking likely prevented a great deal of property damage and safeguarded lives but it also opened him up to a ton of ribbing from the police and fire departments alike. Sadly, officer Scheffer had not been contacted by the makers of Tide for any sponsorship deals or anything of the sort. Though Tide allowed officer Scheffer to save the day we still strongly recommend that our readers keep several fire extinguishers, in good working order, in key areas of their home for these sorts of emergencies.

Unfortunately, officer Scheffer’s health has not been keeping up with him lately. He has had to deal with chronic pancreatitis which ultimately led to stomach surgery (a Whipple procedure) in 2006. Though dealing with these health concerns, Officer Scheffer continued to serve the residents of Overland until recently. While briefly out on medical leave, Officer Scheffer suffered a stroke. He spent about a week in Missouri Baptist Medical Center as a result. I am happy to report that he is back home recovering with his wife Melanie at his side. According to his wife he has maintained his sense of humor throughout this ordeal.

I’d like to ask everyone to please keep Officer Scheffer and his family in their thoughts and prayers. He’s been looking out for us for over 17 years, let’s return the favor. We all expect the Overland Police Department to take care of their own, but as a community we need to let our officers know that we are behind them in good times and bad as well.

(Please note: below this article is another new
one covering the July 9th Council meeting)