Wilkening begins year as MSA president

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WORTHINGTON — Nobles County Sheriff Kent Wilkening was sworn in last Tuesday by Judge Gordon Moore as the 2013 President of the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association (MSA) at the organization’s annual conference and training session in Alexandria.

Wilkening, Nobles County’s sheriff since 1998, served on MSA’s board for the past five years and prior to that was MSA’s Fifth District director for two years.

“I’ll do my best in this position, and my goal is to keep the organization moving forward,” Wilkening said. “This past year, with the efforts of MSA members and staff, we trained 3,000 law enforcement and court staff, and we hope to provide more training this year.”

Wilkening mentioned that court security is a recent hot topic among the state’s 87 sheriffs, and that MSA, along with jail administrators, recently started a jail academy for new correctional officers at Camp Ripley.

“We’re looking at some new dispatcher training, too,” he said.

Currently, only three other Minnesota sheriffs have lengthier tenures than Wilkening, who got his start in Nobles County when then-Nobles County Sheriff Dale Peters hired him as a deputy in May 1987. Prior to that, Wilkening had worked for seven years as a law enforcement officer in Appleton and Cottonwood County.

Peters was MSA president in 1986, making Nobles County one of only two counties in the state to have repeat representation in that position in 33 years. Blue Earth County also holds that distinction.

“That speaks well for our county, for our involvement and awareness on a state level,” said Wilkening, who said he has gotten to know many sheriffs through his MSA activities. Wilkening is also one of two state sheriffs appointed by Governor Mark Dayton to the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST).

“It’s a good recognition for Nobles County, because when I go to state meetings or to the capital, they know I’m not only MSA president but also Nobles County’s sheriff,” he continued. “Outstate counties sometimes have to work harder for attention than metro ones.”

Wilkening is honored to succeed Kandiyohi County Sheriff Dan Hartog as MSA president, and was pleased his wife, Valeri, and two daughters (both students at the University of South Dakota, Vermillion) were able to attend his installation ceremony.

“It’s an honor to serve the sheriffs of this state, and to continue serving the citizens of Nobles County,” Wilkening said. “That’s my first and most important duty.”

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