BLUE ASH, Ohio -- Cheering, hugging and offering high-fives, students and staff at Blue Ash Elementary School said goodbye to a treasured member of their community: Officer Ziegler, who's made a walk through the school's halls part of his workday routine for more than 14 years.
"The kids love to see him," principal Leslie Combs said. "He has a great smile, great personality, jokes around with them. He's just part of the community."
Ziegler shrinks from the spotlight -- so much so he asked WCPO not to share his first name -- but said he was honored to be greeted so warmly on his last day at the school. When he pulled up outside, he found the Blue Ash Elementary sign covered up with a banner reading "BAE loves Officer Z!"
Ziegler's 32-year career as a police officer will end July 26, and Lt. Steve Schuler said those that come after him will have big shoes to fill.
"I'm very proud of him and proud of the students and staff for recognizing his dedication here," Schuler said.
That dedication has included a commitment to making sure students such as Kalayla Reese, a fourth-grader who has a sensory processing disorder, feel safe in their school. Reese's mother, Kimberly, said she felt she could always trust Ziegler to help Kalayla calm down when she became upset or overwhelmed.
"Despite what you see in the m media and what you see in our world, with the negative things going on with our police officers and citizens, there's good people like him out there," she said. "They're doing good things. … For me as an African-American mom, that's huge."
Combs, who started work at Blue Ash Elementary six years ago, said Ziegler's presence had been a constant throughout her time there.
"We're definitely going to miss him," she said. "We hope he still comes to visit us."
