Zach Werenski and his dad Ken visited the Westerville Police Department on Monday alongside Jet’s Pizza to have lunch and talk with local law enforcement officers.
This is Werenski’s second straight year visiting the department, and he was looking forward to bringing his father back this year. Ken Werenski has been a police officer in Michigan for 31 years and is currently serving as director of public safety in the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe Shores.
“I think last year when I left, I called my dad right way, who is a police officer, and I was just talking about how cool the experience was,” Zach said. “So today to have him here and go through the same thing has been awesome for us.”
Werenski brought Jet’s Pizza for the officers to have for lunch while he met everyone and signed CBJ gear for the officers, including a framed No. 8 jersey for Chief Charles Chandler’s birthday.
This visit came ahead of Friday’s First Responders Night at Nationwide Arena, where Zach and his dad will be hosting some of the Westerville police officers in his suite for the game against the St. Louis Blues.
“It hits home,” he said. “(My dad) is coming back for it. It’s obviously a night that means a lot to him and means a lot to me, so to have some of the officers here come to the game on Friday, and my dad be in attendance, it’s always a lot of fun.”
Both Zach and Ken were given a tour of the station and shown all the unique aspects of the department. Lieutenant Jesse Hibbitt said he is grateful to have such a partnership with a CBJ player.
“It’s really fantastic,” Hibbitt said. “In our job, we don’t look for the praise and recognition, but the fact that the Blue Jackets do it, and Jet’s Pizza sponsors that, it’s fantastic to have that recognition and have it be so genuine.”
Westerville Officer Chris Jackson shared his appreciation for Zach’s generosity and all that he does for the department. He’s looking forward to Friday’s game, where he’ll be in attendance to cheer on the Jackets.
“It’s an honor to be able to be in a suite like that,” Jackson said. “It's a rare opportunity that I probably wouldn't have had an opportunity to do anywhere else, so I'm extremely grateful for something like that. It means a lot to have somebody like Zach reach out to us and give us the opportunity to do that.”
Westerville Officer Dan Ruth, who got to meet Zach last year when he visited the department, appreciated the CBJ defenseman showing up on his day off to have lunch with his fellow officers. Officer Ruth will also be at Nationwide Arena on Friday.
“It’s an amazing honor,” he said. “That's a very neat gesture of him to be willing to let us come up and be in his suite. I've never been in a suite for a hockey game so that will be a neat experience for my first time.”
