Comanche Nation Police Department Thanks Fort Sill Soilders

This year, Fort Sill soldiers assisted the Comanche Nation Police Department (CNPD) with the Comanche Nation Fair by providing traffic control and safety services.

CNDP thanked the troops on Wednesday, October 1, at Fort Sill, after 9 volunteers worked 56 hours.

Chief John Journeycake stated that, although Fort Sill is a military installation, they have outside work to do with the community.

“Whatever event we have, we just make a phone call and whatever they have that's willing to give for volunteer work, they're willing to do it,” he said.

 Journeycake said it was important to thank the individuals who helped.

“Taking time out of my day to go thank these individuals [who] worked in the heat,” he said. “It's volunteer work, they're not getting paid for it, so it means a lot when you go and tell them personally, ‘Thank you,’ for what they've done and how much their work is appreciated. Now, I'm going to be honest with you, they are the best vehicle parkers and parking lot attendants that I've ever seen. They were top-notch, and we would love to have them from here on out.”

Journeycake said they had helped in the past and appreciated having the Fort Sill Volunteers.

The individual who called two years ago and returned was Operations Officer and 1st Lt. John Lutat.

 He said it was a lot of fun volunteering at this year’s fair.

“I love helping people. I love getting other people to come out and help other people,” Lutat said. “So, two years ago, I did the same thing with a different group of people, and I've always wanted to just re-establish that connection. So, I reached out this year; thankfully, we got a connection established, and it was super enjoyable. We got to meet a whole lot of new people, get more involved and deepen this relationship that we've been building with the Comanche Nation.”

He said he enjoys coordinating volunteer events and helping soldiers connect with the community.

“As a volunteer coordinator for my current unit, I bring people where there is a manpower or a personnel need to complete something,” Lutat said. “And so, Comanche Nation Fair, I know, is always a big event around here, Lawton, Fort Sill, Oklahoma, in general. And so, I wanted to reach out, and they said, ‘Yes, we need you.’”

When he first arrived in Lawton, Oklahoma, he wanted to learn about the area and its culture. Two places Lutat visited were Museum of the Great Plains and Comanche National Museum, and he began to reach out to organizations. Lutat hopes to expand his broadband into the Kiowa, Comanche and Apache tribes.

“I think a lot of that ties into this being a culturally significant land territory to those three nations and several others in the state of Oklahoma,” he said. “And I think a big part of that is just helping. I want to show the communities that there's a lot more that we can give, and we have a lot of people here that are able to help. We have a lot of young adults who can go out there and spend their time a little bit better than perhaps sitting alone in their rooms on the weekends or be a little bit more mindful of the communities that they're in.”

Both entities aim to establish a relationship that will enable events, such as the CNPD bowling and Shop with a Cop, to run smoothly.