INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office celebrated with Incline Village community members this past weekend at the Local Heroes Parade and “Meet and Greet” hosted at Sierra Nevada College.

The event featured a number of special operations and representatives, including their mounted unit, explosive ordinance disposal, SWAT, K9, and Search and Rescue units.

“We’re here to serve them,” Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam told the Tribune. “And it’s not always about the negativity, but more about the positive stuff. And that’s what we love to show off. The kids love the dogs and the horses and the SWAT trucks, but more importantly, we get to meet the community.”

Balaam, who has been with the Washoe Sheriff’s office for over 25 years, said that these events are important for the community in order to foster good relationships.

“We all live in this community,” Balaam said. “And so we have to have that partnership where the community knows they can come to us. It’s not all about arresting people. There’s other things we can do and partnerships we can build and events like this, and it shows the kids we get to interact with, they realize that we’re just like them.”

The event comes a few weeks before the official promotion of Lt. Corey Solferino to captain, along with many other changes coming to the Sheriff’s office following the nearly $12 million grant approved for the station earlier this year.

“As the new captain assigned to Incline in mid-July, I’m excited for the opportunity to meet community leaders, residents, and visitors,” Solferino said.

Along with the promotion of Solferino, Balaam said that a new lieutenant has already started, and he is currently in the process of picking his newest sergeants, who should be up in the village within the next two months. He mentioned that bringing new deputies and sergeants to the substation has proven to be challenging at times due to training necessary before coming to work on the mountain, as well as technical aspects to get in order prior to starting officially.

Balaam said this is the first time the substation will be fully staffed since the early nineties. He explained that after having to cut costs due to moving the substation up the mountain years ago, it’s been harder to have a full staff, which resulted in relying more on remote deputies being pulled up from the valley when needed.

Balaam said he’s excited for the future of Incline Village and the community’s relationship with sheriff’s offices.

“This is a great place,” Balaam said. “The substation is one of the ones that we absolutely love up here.”