.png)
By Mark Varenhorst, MCP Contributing Writer
PERE MARQUETTE TOWNSHIP — Mason County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Dave Barnett is assigned to Ludington Area School District’s Ludington Elementary School (LES) as its school resource officer.
LES encompasses elementary grades that had been scattered about the Ludington area in many other schools that most of us grew up going to or knowing of quite well. I myself attended Lakeview School before moving to St. Simon’s way back. And then moving back to the Ludington Area Schools again as St. Simon’s had eliminated its high school years before, but that is another story. All those other schools like Lakeview, Foster, Franklin were all condensed into this one school following adjustments, some of which continued after it was built.
Dep. Barnett took me on a tour of his assigned area and I knew he was right; I should have one of those watches that counts my steps. I did enjoy the animals that marked each grade wing as you passed it, but I will admit that unless you know what that animal is, or represents you are lost as to what is down there.
Barnett was born in Pontiac and moved to the Ludington area in 2001 when his dad, Mark Barnett, was hired as Ludington Police Department chief. Prior to moving here, he had frequently camped at the Ludington State Park so he was familiar with the area.
He graduated from Ludington High School in 2005 and went on to West Shore Community College, then transferring to Grand Valley State University. He graduated from GVSU in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. He then went into law enforcement, following his dad’s career.
Barnett took a position with the Colorado Police Department, Colorado Springs, Colo., in 2011. During his five-plus years working in Colorado Springs, he married his wife Marissa and they welcomed a daughter to their family. They wanted to be closer to their families, so they chose to move back to Michigan. In 2016 they moved to the Grand Rapids area and Barnett took a position with the Grand Rapids Police Department. While there, they welcomed another child to their family, a little boy.
Things being what they are change comes. Grand Rapids Police Department went through some funding issues and in case there might be layoffs, Barnett chose to look elsewhere. At that time Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole offered him a position at the Mason Country Sheriff’s Office and he accepted and was sworn in December 2, 2020. While working for the MCSO, Sheriff Cole approached him and told him he would make a good SRO. Barnett really had always wanted to be a K-9 officer so he turned it down. But, the sheriff was insistent and, Barnett “volunteered”.
Sometimes you get to where you are meant to be by odd routes. In this case Sheriff Cole had picked the right person.
As we wandered the halls, meeting teachers and passing students my mind went back to my days when I was on Ludington Fire Department, and if I had to come into this building wow would I be lost.
Barnett was explaining things and we talked of his daily logs. I mentioned back years ago as I would ride with a deputy, while on the sheriff’s reserves, I often would keep their daily logs for them as they dictated things while driving along. We discussed that and he came up with a point that stuck with me.
“How do I keep a daily log? How do we monitor our work, students we interact with? There are so many,” he said.
I thought about that and each of the SROs. If they wrote down every interaction they had, they would be typing on their laptop non-stop. They almost have to only document large items, and the rest falls under “and then I spent all day with the kids and faculty.”
Wandering the halls I could feel Barnett’s excitement about his job. He had sort of been selected for the job of the first SRO, before more were added. But he has certainly grown into it and wears it with pride now.
His interaction with the school personnel was quite seamless as they all seemed to just know he was there and accept him as part of the school.
“The staff here is phenomenal to work with, they fully accept me,” said Barnett.
As we went through one hall he was explaining O bucks; kids in the school can earn O bucks by behavior and such. Then a traveling store run by parents/PTA comes in and the kids can spend their O bucks. We walked in on one such store as it was going on. Also, at times they have a dunk tank or pie contest where staff or the SRO may have to eat a pie. The pies are made of whip cream and, as Barnett said, “I can tell you the silly string and whip cream burns.”
As hard as he was laughing it was obvious he did not mind those pies at all. That whip cream pie thing made me remember sitting in a dunk tank many years earlier. When people (kids) know you; they like to give you the pie, or dunk you. As regards to the O bucks, Barnett said: “we are teaching them a skill, save your money. They do a very good job of incentivizing the kids here.”
As we walked, Barnett talked of how he learned how to play chess from a fourth grader at the school and then started a chess club there, which has grown every year.
“I found out my dad plays chess and now I play him”.
And that connection to his dad comes because a fourth grader taught him chess.
As I made my way to the end of the visit we sat in his office for a bit. I met the principal, Katie Eisinger. The three of us had a long chat about the school, the setting and the kids. She was so easy to talk to and everyone was so accommodating. As I had wandered the halls. I saw so many names and most of them passed through my mind not to stick. One did. Ms. Flewelling. Seeing that name I had to ask my daughter, did her friend Jen have a daughter teaching at Ludington Elementary. Yes, she does. I had a connection right there as I had watched my daughter grow up in the Ludington school district, had come to know all of her friends and still hear their names as they are close. Here was her daughter. The circle of life continues.
________________________
Please Support Local News
Receive daily MCP and OCP news briefings along with email news alerts for $10 a month. Your contribution will help us to continue to provide you with free local news.
To sign up, email editor@mediagroup31.com. In the subject line write: Subscription. Please supply your name, email address, mailing address, and phone number (indicate cell phone). We will not share your information with any outside sources. For more than one email address in a household, the cost is $15 per month per email address.
We can send you an invoice for a yearly payment of $120, which you can conveniently pay online or by check. If you are interested in this method, please email editor@mediagroup31.com and we can sign you up. You can also mail a yearly check for $120 to Media Group 31, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454 (please include your email address).
Payment must be made in advance prior to subscription activation.
We appreciate all our readers regardless of whether they choose to continue to access our service for free or with a monthly financial support.
_____
This story and original photography are copyrighted © 2025, all rights reserved by Media Group 31, LLC, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. No portion of this story or images may be reproduced in any way, including print or broadcast, without expressed written consent.
As the services of Media Group 31, LLC are news services, the information posted within the sites are archivable for public record and historical posterity. For this reason it is the policy and practice of this company to not delete postings. It is the editor’s discretion to update or edit a story when/if new information becomes available. This may be done by editing the posted story or posting a new “follow-up” story. Media Group 31, LLC or any of its agents have the right to make any changes to this policy. Refer to Use Policy for more information.
