“I enjoy hunting, camping, fishing, target shooting and taking my yellow lab, Tebow, to the park.” This was the response received from Rifle’s newest police officer, Josh Allison, when asked about hobbies and interests. Perfect. Rifle can certainly accommodate on all counts. And what Officer Allison offers in return is indeed impressive.
After growing up on the front range, Allison served for four years in the Marine Corps. He spent most of his enlistment at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina working as a Light Armored Vehicle Mechanic. During his final year of service, he also became a martial arts instructor and left the military with the rank of Sergeant.
After his return to Colorado, Josh moved to Grand Junction to attend Colorado Mesa University. He admits he had never heard of Rifle until that move, but ended up working a security position at Grand River Hospital where he met many RPD officers.
“I recall encouraging him to apply to our department several years ago,” recalls Sgt. Kirk Wilson. But Allison wanted to complete his degree before applying. In May, he graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BAS in Criminal Justice and with POST (Peace Officer Standards and Training) certification. His work at Grand River helped forge his interest in applying to the Rifle Police Department.
“As I got to know the Grand River staff and interacted with Rifle residents, I quickly realized Rifle is a tight-knit community that is big enough to stay busy and entertained, but small enough to run into a couple of people you know every time you go to Walmart. I had also heard of Shooters Grill and think it’s one of the coolest restaurants in the country. I enjoy how the Garfield County Fair attracts some of my favorite big name artists like Josh Turner, Trace Adkins, and Joe Nichols. Over time I met many of the Rifle Police Officers as they came to the hospital quite often. I always appreciated their professionalism and admired their use of discretion when dealing with various situations. I also think the decals on the patrol cars are really cool. “
A new career isn’t the only change in Officer Allison’s life. He recently married his college sweetheart, Jenna. He actually used an assignment for an American Sign Language class they took together to propose. As a graduate of Aspen High School, Jenna is happy to be able to stay relatively close to her family in Snowmass Village. She will be student teaching this fall in Clifton while she finishes up her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in math.
“We are both really excited we will get to raise a family and spend our careers here in Rifle,” remarked Allison. This sentiment of family is shared by Chief Tommy Klein who is “very pleased that Josh will be officially joining the Rifle Police Department family.”
Officer Allison was sworn in as an official member of the City of Rifle family at the June 17th meeting of City Council. Be sure to say “hi” when you see him out on patrol (or in Walmart!).
Rifle Rapport is a periodic article featuring the people and projects of the City of Rifle. If you have suggestions for future articles, please contact City of Rifle Public Information Officer Kathy Pototsky at 970-665-6420 or kpototsky@rifleco.org.