After 35 years, cop still has time to play
October 27, 2009
By J.B. Wogan
By J.B. Wogan
Seven years ago, a student came down from the bleachers during an Eastlake basketball game and challenged Stan Chapin in pingpong. Chapin, a Sammamish police officer, was working the game, but he agreed to play afterwards.
Much to his surprise, a group of teenagers was waiting at the student’s house to see the match.
“I kind of walked into a trap,” Chapin said. “He was good. He took the lead and then I came back and then I finally beat him.”
Chapin, a righty with a strong backhand, prides himself on his pingpong prowess. He still owns a paddle he bought in 1969, which he prefers because of its leather wraparound grip. The rubber surface has worn smooth over time, he said.
“He’s not really like any other cop,” Eastlake High School sophomore Alex Gibson said. “I think everybody likes him.”
The city of Sammamish certainly does. On Oct. 20, the City Council recognized Chapin for 35 years of service in the King County Sheriff’s Office. For the last 10, Chapin has served as the school resource officer at Eastlake and at Inglewood Junior High where he patrols the schools and acts as a liaison between the Sammamish Police Department and the Lake Washington School District.
Students, school officials and co-workers describe Chapin as fun, accessible and capable of laughing at himself.
Chris Bede, an associate principal at Eastlake, said Chapin exercises compassion in how he works with struggling students.
“He’s great at addressing the issue and not necessarily having that jade his perception of that kid,” Bede said.
“He’s wonderful with the kids,” said Alana Hall, Sammamish’s school resource officer in the Issaquah School District. “One of the things that it (the job) requires is an outgoing personality, and he absolutely has that.”
In reflecting on his 10 years as a school resource officer so far, Chapin first mentions the school championships he’s seen, the girls soccer team that took first in state, the football team that went undefeated one season.
“I like being around high school sports because they’re playing for the love of the game,” he said.
Sports have been an ongoing thread in Chapin’s life.
Chapin was a guard on the Odea High School basketball team when they won the 1968 conference championship against the other catholic schools in the Seattle area.
Chapin, 59 and longtime Bothell resident, became a police officer in 1972 but took a two-year leave of absence in 1978 to train for the Olympic trials. He wanted to qualify for the marathon, which required running a bit more than 26 miles in 2 hours and 20 minutes. He ran a pace of about 5 minutes and 45 seconds per mile, but missed the qualifying time.
“My husband is very competitive,” observed Susan, Stan’s wife. “He runs. He used to run in races all the time. Now he doesn’t race as much because he says, ‘If I want to race, I want to win.’”
Chapin’s sense of play is evident in his YouTube videos, Susan said.
“I call him Peter Pan. He’ll never grow up,” she said. “Watch those and then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.”
Two short clips show a screeching Chapin, neck extended, arms folded up, imitating a velociraptor. In another clip, Chapin in lipstick and a blonde wig dances before a gym full of students — he agreed to the stunt if students raised a certain amount of money for cancer research.
In the weeks prior to his performance, Chapin watched the music video of Hannah Montana’s “Nobody’s Perfect,” memorizing the choreography and lyrics.
“He kind of went overboard, I thought,” Susan said. “He’s going, ‘How do you think this makeup looks? Is this too much lipstick?’”
Sgt. Robert Baxter, of the Sammamish Police Department, said it’s typical of the way Chapin can let loose.
“He can be crazy and loony and all that sort of stuff, but he can also be very serious,” Baxter said.
Chapin’s work hasn’t always been teen-focused. Before joining the Sammamish Police Department, Chapin spent time on the county’s fugitive task force and the major crimes unit and on a drug abuse resistance education program.
Susan, a 911 center dispatch supervisor for the King County Sheriff’s Office, said her husband has learned to assume different personas, depending on the situation. She said she’s noticed that some cops have a more difficult time shedding the serious, officer-like attitude when they are off-duty.
“He can be one of the kids. But then, when something happens, it’s like flipping a switch … He’s really good at it. He wasn’t at first,” she said. “I remember saying to him, you’re not on-duty, knock that off.”
Having children helped, Susan said. The Chapins have three children, the youngest being a 15-year-old attending Inglemoor High School, a rival of Eastlake.
Baxter said Chapin’s ability to connect with students is invaluable to the police department.
“It gives us a very big edge,” Baxter said, adding that having a school resource officer allows teenagers to feel comfortable around police.
“It’s letting the kids know that we are there to help them. I think that’s what Stan gets across so well.”
Reporter J.B. Wogan can be reached at 392-6434, ext. 247, or jbwogan@isspress.com. To comment on this story, visit www.SammamishReview.com.
Seven years ago, a student came down from the bleachers during an Eastlake basketball game and challenged Stan Chapin in pingpong. Chapin, a Sammamish police officer, was working the game, but he agreed to play afterwards.
Much to his surprise, a group of teenagers was waiting at the student’s house to see the match.
Stan Chapin admires the award the City Council gave him. Photo by J.B. Wogan
“I kind of walked into a trap,” Chapin said. “He was good. He took the lead and then I came back and then I finally beat him.”
Chapin, a righty with a strong backhand, prides himself on his pingpong prowess. He still owns a paddle he bought in 1969, which he prefers because of its leather wraparound grip. The rubber surface has worn smooth over time, he said.
“He’s not really like any other cop,” Eastlake High School sophomore Alex Gibson said. “I think everybody likes him.”
The city of Sammamish certainly does. On Oct. 20, the City Council recognized Chapin for 35 years of service in the King County Sheriff’s Office. For the last 10, Chapin has served as the school resource officer at Eastlake and at Inglewood Junior High where he patrols the schools and acts as a liaison between the Sammamish Police Department and the Lake Washington School District.
Students, school officials and co-workers describe Chapin as fun, accessible and capable of laughing at himself.
Chris Bede, an associate principal at Eastlake, said Chapin exercises compassion in how he works with struggling students.
“He’s great at addressing the issue and not necessarily having that jade his perception of that kid,” Bede said.
“He’s wonderful with the kids,” said Alana Hall, Sammamish’s school resource officer in the Issaquah School District. “One of the things that it (the job) requires is an outgoing personality, and he absolutely has that.”
In reflecting on his 10 years as a school resource officer so far, Chapin first mentions the school championships he’s seen, the girls soccer team that took first in state, the football team that went undefeated one season.
“I like being around high school sports because they’re playing for the love of the game,” he said.
Sports have been an ongoing thread in Chapin’s life.
Chapin was a guard on the Odea High School basketball team when they won the 1968 conference championship against the other catholic schools in the Seattle area.
Chapin, 59 and longtime Bothell resident, became a police officer in 1972 but took a two-year leave of absence in 1978 to train for the Olympic trials. He wanted to qualify for the marathon, which required running a bit more than 26 miles in 2 hours and 20 minutes. He ran a pace of about 5 minutes and 45 seconds per mile, but missed the qualifying time.
“My husband is very competitive,” observed Susan, Stan’s wife. “He runs. He used to run in races all the time. Now he doesn’t race as much because he says, ‘If I want to race, I want to win.’”
Chapin’s sense of play is evident in his YouTube videos, Susan said.
“I call him Peter Pan. He’ll never grow up,” she said. “Watch those and then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.”
Two short clips show a screeching Chapin, neck extended, arms folded up, imitating a velociraptor. In another clip, Chapin in lipstick and a blonde wig dances before a gym full of students — he agreed to the stunt if students raised a certain amount of money for cancer research.
In the weeks prior to his performance, Chapin watched the music video of Hannah Montana’s “Nobody’s Perfect,” memorizing the choreography and lyrics.
“He kind of went overboard, I thought,” Susan said. “He’s going, ‘How do you think this makeup looks? Is this too much lipstick?’”
Sgt. Robert Baxter, of the Sammamish Police Department, said it’s typical of the way Chapin can let loose.
“He can be crazy and loony and all that sort of stuff, but he can also be very serious,” Baxter said.
Chapin’s work hasn’t always been teen-focused. Before joining the Sammamish Police Department, Chapin spent time on the county’s fugitive task force and the major crimes unit and on a drug abuse resistance education program.
Susan, a 911 center dispatch supervisor for the King County Sheriff’s Office, said her husband has learned to assume different personas, depending on the situation. She said she’s noticed that some cops have a more difficult time shedding the serious, officer-like attitude when they are off-duty.
“He can be one of the kids. But then, when something happens, it’s like flipping a switch … He’s really good at it. He wasn’t at first,” she said. “I remember saying to him, you’re not on-duty, knock that off.”
Having children helped, Susan said. The Chapins have three children, the youngest being a 15-year-old attending Inglemoor High School, a rival of Eastlake.
Baxter said Chapin’s ability to connect with students is invaluable to the police department.
“It gives us a very big edge,” Baxter said, adding that having a school resource officer allows teenagers to feel comfortable around police.
“It’s letting the kids know that we are there to help them. I think that’s what Stan gets across so well.”
Reporter J.B. Wogan can be reached at 392-6434, ext. 247, or jbwogan@isspress.com.
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