LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile
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Evan Traudt
Position: Resource Officer
School: Arlington High School
School District: Arlington Central School District
City, State: LaGrangeville, NY
Evan Traudt was nominated by Aaron Beverly, a member of his community.
Just days after the February 2018 school shooting in Parkland, FL, a student in Lagrangeville, NY made a report to Officer Traudt about an online chat she was having with someone she didn't know. The other student was talking about carrying out a mass shooting of his own at his school in Fair Haven Union School District in Vermont, a long way from Dutchess County, NY.
Traudt responded immediately, located the child in VT, notified the school district and local law enforcement to avoid another school shooting. Officer Traudt is a hero in both Dutchess County, NY and in Rutland County, VT. He has made such a profound impact on his community.
"This is a story of different police agencies working together and of a police officer serving his community in a positive way," Beverly said. "It is also about a student who is confident enough to trust this officer with her story; a child who was raised to know right from wrong and when to speak up! This is a story of a crisis being averted and children's lives being saved!"