Posse Events
The Posse is
involved in many events throughout the year. Some of the events are for
fun and entertainment, some of them are to assist the Sheriff, and some
of them accomplish both. Since the Posse is strictly volunteer and not
funded by the Sheriff's Department, the Posse members collect donations
from numerous businesses throughout the area and have various
fundraisers to raise money to buy supplies.
Parades
The
Sheriff's Posse was started in 1964 to aid in public relations between
the Sheriff's Department and the community. The way the Posse
accomplished this was by participating in numerous parades throughout
the county. Over the years, the Posse has participated in many parades
and continues to do so even today. The parades still have their
purpose, as they did when the Posse began, but the horses and riders
enjoy parading downtown just as much as the spectators love to watch
them. The Posse's Mounted Unit has graced the streets in many different
cities, like Byron, Bancroft, and Morrice.
Both horse and rider are proud to carry flags, whether it be the
American flag, the Michigan State flag, or the Shiawassee County
Sheriff's Posse flag.
Pony Express Ride
The
Pony Express is a fundraiser in which posse members from around the
state sell official stationary for a donation. The donation is used to
help someone, usually a child, with a life threatening illness. It is
sponsored by the Michigan Sheriff's Mounted Association (MSMA) and is
hosted by a different county each year the second weekend in June.
Each horse and rider team carry a mailbag that contains the letters
written on the official stationary. They ride for one mile and then
hand it off "Pony Express" style (on the run) to the next horse and
rider. This process continues until each member attending the ride gets
a turn carrying the bag.
The recipient of the donations is nominated and voted on by the entire
membership in March. In 2005, the Pony Express ride generated over
$8,000!
There is also an obstacle course, a parade, and a horse show that take place during the same weekend.
Spring/Fall Shoot
The Michigan Sheriff's Mounted Association (MSMA) sponsors a spring and fall shoot; each year a different county is chosen to host this event. Often times the shoot is held at the Shiawassee County range facility. A lot of effort and planning goes into the shoot to make sure it is successful. The Posse members enjoy this competitive event no matter where it is held.
Shiawassee County Fair
The Posse's main purpose at the fair is to provide security on the grounds. Mounted members patrol in pairs on horseback in the evenings, and all members provide security on foot and with golf carts.
Volunteer Work
The
posse will fingerprint children at different events throughout the
year. Depending on the event, they sometimes fingerprint anywhere from
100 to 200 children. To read more about fingerprinting, click here.
Posse members also put on demonstrations for local students. They show
the kids how much time and training they spend working with their
horses. Since instinctively horses are creatures of flight, it takes a
lot of time and effort to gain the amount of trust required to be a
police horse. The children are shown how the horses could master an
obstacle course and knock over barrels because he had learned to trust
in his rider. The children are allowed to pet the horses and they also
give out souvenirs.
