St. Charles police officer Meghan Kramer loves being a bridge to the community

Meghan Kramer has been the St. Charles Police Department Crime Prevention Officer for three years and has been working in law enforcement for a decade.

She started her career with the Illinois Department of Corrections, working in a prison, before joining the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office in 2015, where she met her husband, Dan, a McHenry County sergeant.

Kramer said her uncle was a big influence on her desire to become a police officer. He was a deputy with the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office and, growing up, she would stay with him during summers. She recalls watching him leave for work in the middle of the night and prodding him for stories about the job. Her grandfather was a Chicago police officer.

Kramer is the handler for the St. Charles Police Department’s comfort dog Charlie, a golden retriever/German shepherd mix who was donated to the department in 2021. Charlie joined the force in February 2022 and spends all of his time on and off the clock with Kramer.

Kramer’s relationship with animals started long before working with Charlie. She grew up riding horses.

At home, she has two horses, three goats, five dogs and a barn cat. All but the goats were rescue animals.

“I’ve always had a soft side for animals, especially rescues,” Kramer said. “If I wasn’t a police officer, I’m confident that I would’ve been a veterinarian.”

“It’s really cool to see that I’m able to do what he was doing. I love being that positive role model.”

—  Meghan Kramer, St. Charles Police Department Crime Prevention Officer

Kramer said having a comfort dog is relatively new to law enforcement and Charlie makes a big impact on the way citizens interact with her, especially kids.

“He brings a calm, sweet demeanor. He’s got that soft look to him and a lot of kids love approaching him and aren’t too scared of him,” Kramer said. “At the schools, they all know him really well and get real excited to see him. He just really helps bring the police department together with the community.”

While she interacted with many community members when she was a patrol officer, Kramer said the interactions often are more positive in her current role, especially when Charlie is with her.

Kramer is a member of the St. Charles Youth Commission and gives tours of the police department to local Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts. She has hosted a Youth Academy program in the past for kids ages 13 to 17 to learn about police work. She also often brings Charlie to nursing homes in the community where the residents love interacting with him.

Kramer did a short stint as a school resource officer and still does frequent visits and teaches drug prevention classes at multiple St. Charles schools.

During the school year, Kramer and Charlie are at St. Charles schools every Monday morning to welcome students and they attend most school events. She said she loves the innocence of the kids and the questions they ask. She enjoys being recognized as the “Too Good For Drugs” teacher and hearing success stories from former students.

“I never thought I would have that opportunity in law enforcement. I still remember who my DARE officer was,” Kramer said. “It’s really cool to see that I’m able to do what he was doing. I love being that positive role model.”

As a crime prevention officer, Kramer is constantly out in the community and attends most public events. She said part of her role is to serve as a representative of the department and build relationships. She gets to see a different side of the community and vice versa.

“I love that every day is different,” Kramer said. “I go out to so many different events and interact with so many different people.”

Kramer donates her time to many charities and community programs, including the Torch Run and Cop on a Rooftop, which support Special Olympics Illinois, Shop with a Cop, which provides presents for local families during Christmas time, Coffee with a Cop and Touch a Truck events.

Kramer said at pretty much any community event, if she is not participating, you can expect to see her and Charlie there showing support and building connections with the community.