2020 Mason Moore Foundation Calendar includes Chinook's Kevin Spudic

 

November 27, 2019

Chinook Assistant Chief of Police Kevin Spudic is featured in the 2020 Mason Moore (Pictured Above) Foundation Calendar.

Whenever a law enforcement officer puts on his or her uniform it is an unwavering act of selflessness with the sole intent of serving the community in which they serve.

The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) adopted the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics in October 1957 at the 64th Annual IACP Conference and Exposition. The Code of Ethics stands as a preface to the mission and commitment law enforcement agencies make to the public they serve.

The first part begins: "As a law enforcement officer, my fundamental duty is to serve the community; to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against oppression or intimidation and the peaceful against violence or disorder; and to respect the constitutional rights of all to liberty, equality, and justice." It goes on to further define their mission in serving the public but the foundation is firmly planted in that first paragraph.

Unfortunately, from time to time that dedication to service means paying the ultimate price. On May 16, 2017 Broadwater County Deputy Sheriff, Mason Moore, was killed in the line of duty.

Deputy Moore was killed by 39 year old Marshall Barrus of Gallitan County and his father Lloyd Montier Barrus, 61. Deputy Moore was in pursuit when the younger Barrus fired at his vehicle. A 100 mile pursuit ensued with Marshall being shot by pursuing officers and Lloyd's arrest. Marshall died days later from his wounds.

The tragic events left a three year Deputy Sheriff dead and his wife and three children grieving.

Almost immediately his wife Jodi began the Mason Moore Foundation. The foundations motto: The Mason Moore Foundation was created to show our love and support of Law Enforcement Agencies in Montana. The Foundation will promote and develop communication and understanding between the community and Law Enforcement and educate the public and state and local leaders about ways in which they can support Law Enforcement. The Foundation will also provide grants to local law enforcement agencies to provide for programs or special equipment that may not be available through the standard governmental funding process.

One of the foundations biggest goals is to help small law enforcement agencies acquire the assets need to help ensure officer safety and allow them to better serve the communities they serve by providing grants to these agencies.

One of the ways they do that is by selling products such as t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, jewelry mugs and even calendars among other things. The money raised from these sales goes to the foundations grant program.

The Mason Moore Foundation 2020 Calenders are now available for purchase and one of the officers chosen for inclusion in the program is Chinook assistant Chief of Police, Officer Kevin Spudic.

Spudic is featured during the month of June with the iconic Sugarbeet Factory providing the backdrop. How his being photographed for the calendar is an interesting series of events.

Jeff Krogstad and his brother Neal put the calendar together and continue to help Jodi and Masons children carry on his #lovewins message and the "Help us. Help them," idea.

Jeff logged over 1,600 miles while traveling across the state gathering officer pictures and stories. "Jeff pulls up to me while I'm washing the Durango outside the department and introduces himself, starts talking and then asks if I want to take pictures, which was kind of odd at the time because he never said what for. After I realized what he was doing I said absolutely and off we went," said Spudic.

"At first we looked at the water tower as a backdrop but we had a hard time getting the angle right. Then I though what better spot could their be than the Sugarbeet Factory and off we went," added Spudic. The result is a fantastic picture that most certainly captures the essence of Chinook, Montana. "It may not be the prettiest background in the calendar but people from Chinook will know it immediately."

The Calendar, unfortunately isn't available in any stores locally but anyone interested in supporting the cause and purchasing a calendar can go on-line to https://masonmoorefoundation.com/products/2020-mason-moore-foundation-calendar to buy one or any other merchandise they wish.

The calender takes an in depth look at each officer selected and includes plenty of information about the foundation, its goals and storyline.

"It's a really great cause and supporting it indirectly will support our local police department as we will be one of those agencies soliciting a grant," commented Spudik. The department is in desperate need of new dash cams and is also looking at installing computers in the vehicles.

Deputy Moore was murdered in 2017 and the Foundation has already firmly established itself. "Her response was almost immediate following his murder. I'm very touched that her first thought after incurring such a tragedy was to first help small police departments acquire necessary tools to better perform their duties," said Spudic. "Small agencies have small budgets and can't afford the tools bigger departments have readily available to them."

According to the bio found on the month of June in the 2020 calendar, Officer Spudic took a very similar route to law enforcement as Deputy Moore, "Just like Mason I started in law enforcement with Motor Carrier Service (MCS)". Spudic transferred to the Great Falls District from Glasgow in 2017 and moved to Chinook. In late 2018 Spudic took on some part time shifts with the Chinook Police Department to help out with a manpower shortage and stated how much he enjoyed being able to interact with the public an a completely new way.

Soon after Spudic decided to leave a job he was very fond of and a boss he enjoyed working for to apply for a full time position and to this day has no regrets about the decision he made.

 
 

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