Published: November 06, 2009 11:53 pm      

Probation officer gets top honors

DANVILLE — For the second time in almost 15 years, Vermilion County has the top probation officer in the state of Illinois.

Probation Supervisor Heidi Lange was honored on Oct. 29 with the Robert E. Burdine Probation Officer of the Year Award during the Illinois Probation and Court Services Association’s fall conference in Peoria.

Lange was not aware she had been selected to receive the award and admits she was “caught off guard” by the honor.

“I just feel like I do my job,” Lange said, adding she is proud to think people believe she goes above and beyond what is expected of her. She started with the Vermilion County Probation Department in 1998 writing pre-sentencing hearing reports.

Former county probation officer Pete Lary received the Probation Officer of the Year Award in 1995.

Vermilion County Probation Officer Sarah Nixon received a Distinguished Service Aware at the conference.

As supervisor of the adult division since 2006, Lange currently has a staff of seven probation officers that she oversees. One handles domestic violence cases while the others handle a variety of probation situations. Lange herself also handles a small caseload.

“Everyone works very hard up here,” she said.

Probation Director Tom Gregory said he nominated Lange for the award. A committee then selected Lange from among the nominations.

Gregory said Lange is a good officer who has helped the probation department during the years. Among the accomplishments he cited in his nomination was her development of a domestic unit for the department as well as a risk assessment tool used by county probation.