2024 WFTOA SPEAKERS

CAPTAIN JEFF STEFONEK
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Marathon County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jeff Stefonek has been a law enforcement officer for 19 years. He spent thirteen of those years on Marathon County’s multi-jurisdictional SWAT Team, serving his final three years as Team Commander. Jeff has recently retired from SWAT and currently oversees the detective bureau, narcotics task force, evidence, digital forensics, civil process, and warrant & ID as the Investigations Division Captain. Jeff has served on the executive board of the Midwest Tactical Officer’s Association since 2013 where he currently holds the position of treasurer. Jeff is a graduate of Police Executive Research Forum’s (PERF) Senior Management Institute for Police and completed a one-year fellowship with PERF in 2023. Off duty, Jeff enjoys spending time outdoors with his wife and three children.

HOLLY HAKES
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Holly Hakes is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and owner of Hakes Wellness Solutions, LLC. Holly’s clinical practice exclusively serves law enforcement officers, other first responders, and their families. She supports clients through both personal and professional struggles including post-incident support. Holly has a master's degree in counseling from the University of Wisconsin- Stout and a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. She brings a diverse background of personal and professional experiences, including work in the industry herself, fueling her passion. Holly has been married to Lee Hakes, a retired law enforcement officer for 31 years. With Lee’s 27 years of experience in law enforcement he has joined Holly as co-owner and business manager of Hakes Wellness Solutions, LLC. Holly and Lee have three adult children.

RET. PO KRIS O'NEILL
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Kris O’Neill is a retired police officer with 25years of service at the Eau Claire Police Department. He served as a patrol officer, community policing officer, detective, and polygraph examiner. At the time of retirement he was the president of the non-supervisory officers union. He was previously involved with the evidence collection team, the bike patrol team, and a sniper on the tactical response team. Kris retired from law enforcement in 2022. He and his wife Lisa have two daughters.

KEVIN KELLEHER M. E.D.
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Kevin Kelleher, M.Ed., began his police career providing police, fire and ambulance services on northern Minnesota’s Iron Range. He later joined the Bloomington, Minnesota, Police Department and served in a variety of capacities, including patrol, SWAT, detective, patrol sergeant, and K-9 supervisor. Kevin ran the Office of Training and Development, which included field training. In 1996, he became the Chief of Police in Wayzata, Minnesota. After seven years, Kevin went on to manage a state-of-the-art multi-agency police and fire training facility in the Minneapolis area for several years. Kevin is an alumnus of PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police and the Southern Police Institute’s 89th Administrative Officers Course. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and a master’s degree in education from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota. Kevin served as an Assistant Adjunct Professor at St. Mary’s University of Minnesota, where he taught public safety courses. He was an instructor for Northwestern University’s Center for Public Safety, in Evanston, Illinois, where taught supervisory, command, and executive-level programs. He also served as a course director for the School of Police Staff and Command. Kevin has taught throughout the United States and lectured on American policing at the Garda Síochána (Irish National Police) Academy. Kevin, a former FTO and field-training program manager, has taught field-training topics for many years. He is the owner and lead instructor of Field Training Solutions in Duluth, MN.Contact Kevin Kelleher: kevin@ftosolutions.com

LT. DAN KIRCH
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Dan Kirch has been involved with emergency services for 21 years. He is currently a training Lieutenant with the Sauk City Volunteer Fire Department and the Communications Supervisor for the Sauk County dispatch center. Dan served in the role of telecommunicator for 7 years and was promoted to the Communications supervisor in the winter of 2022. He is certified to the instructor II level through the National Fire Academy as well as the Kaminsky Field Training Course for Law Enforcement. He has trained dozens of volunteer firefighters as well as over 20 telecommunicators. He has also recently taken on the role of MABAS 131 President for Sauk County. Dan Lives in Sauk County with his wife and 2 dogs and enjoys working on classic cars and learning about history and traveling in his free time.

ATTORNEY BRIAN DESMOND
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Brian Desmond has 21 years of experience as an attorney. His first job out of law school was as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Antigo where he worked closely with law enforcement prosecuting municipal violations. The next twenty years of his career have been spent as a County Corporation Counsel, seventeen years with Oneida County and three years with Sauk County. Brian has extensive experience working with law enforcement in the areas of litigation involving law enforcement, employment and labor related issues, Wisconsin’s Open Meetings and Open records laws, Chapter 51 mental commitments, Child in Need of Protection and Services cases, as well as advising on the myriad of other issues that arise during the day-to-day operations of law enforcement. Brian has Juris Doctorate degree from the Valparaiso University School of Law, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science – Public Law Concentration, from Western Michigan University.