OCPA Crime Prevention Practitioner of the Year – Non Law Enforcement

Rachel Mathess

In his nomination of Rachel Mathess for this award, Earl Smith wrote the following:

“I first met Rachel Mathess in the mid 1990’s when I was assigned to the Community Liaison Unit of the Columbus Division of Police and Rachel was one of the folks who was working very had to establish a working neighborhood watch program on the west side of Columbus. Over the following years, it seemed that everywhere I went and every community meeting I attended, Rachel Mathess was there working to promote both the neighborhood watch concept and various neighborhood watches as well.”

Long a supporter and believer of OCPA and its mission, Rachel Mathess officially joined the Ohio Crime Prevention Association in 1999. What was notable was not that Rachel Mathess joined our association, but that she was a citizen member … someone who believed strongly enough in the value of the association and our work that she was willing to pay out of her own pocket to be a member.

Rachel recently took a new job working third shift with a locally based insurance corporation. She has continued to champion the OCPA message at every opportunity. She has worked tirelessly to create a number of prevention opportunities within her organization, including monthly events to address different safety issues. Handouts Rachel has created with information from OCPA and promoting OCPA have become so popular that they are now being reprinted for further availability and distribution. All of these efforts go far beyond the scope of her employment responsibilities and/or expectations.

There is simply no one whose devotion to OCPA and efforts on behalf of the association are more nobly and selflessly motivated than Rachel Mathess. This is why she has been awarded the OCPA Crime Prevention Practitioner of the Year Award for non-law enforcement professionals.