Deputy's Vehicle Symbolizes Sheriff's Office Partnership With East Mills School District

An East Mills Wolverines-themed sheriff’s office vehicle is generating conversation in Malvern and across Mills County.

The vehicle, a 2023 Dodge Ram truck, is driven by Mills County Sheriff’s Deputy Justin Farnan, the resource officer at East Mills School.

“It’s a regular patrol vehicle, we just have the customized graphics on it,” said Farnan. “I’ve heard nothing but good things. I’ve had some people I’ve never met before or aren’t even associated with East Mills say something to me at Casey’s or when I’m just out and about.

“I’ve had people tell me they really like the truck – it’s sharp.”

Farnan said he first saw pictures of school-themed vehicles being used by other law enforcement agencies on a Facebook group for resource officers.

“Southwest Valley, the Corning-Villisca area, did a Southwest Valley-themed vehicle last year with their mascot and school colors,” Farnan said. “I thought, ‘That’s a really neat idea.’ At the time, I had an older vehicle in our fleet and I didn’t think it would work, but then they decided to replace the vehicle so I talked to Josh (England) – he was sheriff at the time – and ran it by him.

England was on board with the idea of the East Mills-themed vehicle.

“He thought it was a great idea,” Farnan said. “It shows community involvement and it would also show our dedication to EM. I thought it would show the connection between the sheriff’s office and the school. We are invested just like they are invested in us.”

The graphic design for the vehicle was done by Underdog Design and Drawing in Stanton, the same company that did the vehicle for Southwest Valley. Farnan, Sheriff England and the school district all contributed to selecting the final look of the vehicle, which is trimmed in East Mills’ colors.

Farnan, a Maryville, Mo. native, has been a Mills County deputy for 12 years. He spent nine years as a police officer in Red Oak and two years with the Glenwood Police Department before joining the sheriff’s office. He’s now in his sixth year as the resource officer at East Mills. He’s the first and only resource officer the school district has had.

“I had been on midnights for a good portion of my career,” he said. “Kim Clark was chief deputy then and said she had been approached by Paul Croghan, the superintendent at the time, about the resource officer position. It’s not something I had given a whole lot of thought about.

I thought the schedule would be nice and it was something I was certainly willing to try.

“My wife (Amber) encouraged me to do it. That first year, I thought, I’ll try it and see what I think. I kind of got hooked.”

As the resource officer, Farnan is at the school for the safety and security of the building, the part of the job that’s necessary, he said, because of “everything bad you hear in the news,” but he’s also a mentor to students of all ages, from PreK to 12th grade.

Farnan is there for students if they’re  dealing with personal issues or just need an adult to talk to.

“I do more just interacting with students,” he said. ‘Maybe they’re having a problem at home – just life problems. It definitely can be very challenging, but’s it’s also very rewarding.

“I’ve seen five graduating classes now. Seeing some of the students that were in the elementary age when I started, where they are now, how they’ve progressed, how they’ve matured. It’s really neat to watch them grow up. Sometimes, it’s almost like they’re your own kids.”

Shootings and other incidents of violence in schools across the country has led to a growing number of schools having resource officers, even in rural communities.

“When I started six years ago, I don’t think anywhere in this area, outside of Council Bluffs and Glenwood, had one,” Farnan said. “But, since I’ve started, we’ve seen Shenandoah, Atlantic, Southwest Valley, F-M (Fremont-Mills) / Sidney, so it’s growing.”

Farnan said he enjoys the work he’s doing and can see himself being  at East Mills as long as the school district will have him.

“East Mills has treated me really, really well and I love getting up and coming to work,” he said. “I truly do mean that.”