Mike McKenna, Baldwin City police chief, has dealt with gruesome cases during his years in law enforcement. He says it is never easy.

“I was terrified. I remember the gun pressing into my back as I was pushed into the dark freezer room,” says Mike McKenna, recalling the robbery at the grocery store where he worked as a teenager.

“The robbers tied the lock with clothes hanger wire. It took the five of us a long time to finally push that thick door out.”

McKenna ran to telephone the operator.

“It was before cell phones,” he says. “The police arrived within minutes, and I could have kissed the officers. I knew I was safe and remember thinking if I could give others that same feeling I wanted to do it.”

McKenna, now 62, got his wish. He’s been Baldwin City’s police chief since 2002 and has spent most of his life in law enforcement.

He graduated from Wichita School High South in 1964 and attended Friends University on a football scholarship. After sustaining a serious sports injury, he left college and worked at Boeing until he became a patrol officer in Coffeyville’s police department in 1969.

He graduated from Kansas Law Enforcement’s Training Center in 1971, moved to the Wichita Police Department, and received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Wichita State University in 1978 and a master’s degree in 1983.

He became lieutenant of special investigations and dealt with homicides, including the early BTK serial killer investigations, rapes and child abuse cases.

“We’ve handled some gruesome cases over the years,” McKenna says.

“One beautiful spring morning, shortly after my son’s birth, I was called to a dump where a worker found a newborn’s body. The pathologist said the baby had lived and breathed but had frozen to death in the overnight temperatures. I couldn’t understand why someone would do that. I went home, saw my son, and cried and cried.”

Murder scenes and their aftermath are particularly challenging.

“I’ve witnessed awful anguish and tears in victims’ families. It’s more than any family should have to bear. I wish we had better services to support and provide for them.”

McKenna tells young officers it’s natural to be bothered by horrific cases and they need to forget the “John Wayne” syndrome of pretending everything’s fine. He’s a strong advocate of counseling for police and victims.

He’s had to learn to let go over the years and values the support and understanding of his close-knit family — Debbie, his wife of 33 years, and sons Kevin and Steve.

McKenna remains passionate about police work and serving the community.

He loves helping people and says it’s rewarding to know he’s managed to help people get out of bad situations.

“In my long career as a police officer, I’ve been able to talk people out of killing themselves and others,” he says. “I’ve helped prostitutes recover their self-respect by getting them off the street and into school or jobs. I’ve helped poor and sick children have a good Christmas. I’ve mentored people through school, college and into law enforcement, and I’m still able to work to make the community a safer place for everyone. What more could I ask for?”