Shay means to invest the time needed

Steve Shay joined the race for county commissioner and intends to retire as Thermopolis Police Chief.

Steve Shay came to Wyoming in 1977, courtesy of the U.S. Air Force where he was a criminal investigator until his active duty ended in 1981.

Liking the law enforcement side of things, Shay was hired by the Thermopolis Police Department in 1981, serving as an investigator, Sergeant and Chief before leaving to work for R&S Well Service in 1997 as their safety director. Shay returned to the force as Chief for two years before returning to R&S.

“I spent a total of ten years with R&S before moving on to a compliance investigator position with WYDOT,” he said. “I was with WYDOT a little over eight years. I was able to maintain my law enforcement certification as a reserve deputy with the Hot Springs County Sheriff’s Office.”

He returned as police chief in 2015.

“I will be retiring from the department in January,” he said. “I will have dedicated a total of 42 years of my life to law enforcement, 38 of those years in Thermopolis.”

He has been elected mayor of Thermopolis twice, serving two two-year terms.

“I am not ready to stop contributing to our community and had looked at different avenues where I thought I could be of assistance,” he said. “I had given some thought to running for this position in the past, but never felt I could dedicate the time and energy it would or should require. I understand that being a good commissioner means investing more time than just showing up for meetings.”

Shay feels his experiences working in government, the connections he’s made and the time spent as mayor would give him a solid foundation to work from. He says he also believes his time working in private industry has given him different experiences and perspectives.