WEXFORD COUNTY — A Northern Michigan sheriff’s office is in mourning, after their former leader, who served as sheriff for decades, has died.
Former Wexford County Sheriff Gary Finstrom died Wednesday at an assisted living facility in Falmouth at the age of 71.
Finstrom served in law enforcement for more than four decades and was the Sheriff of Wexford County for most of that time. He retired in 2016.
Sheriff Trent Taylor said Finstrom was well loved-and well respected during his nearly 24 years as sheriff.
“It’s heartbreaking. It’s a tremendous loss for our community, the sheriff’s office and all those that know him. He was a wonderful man. He was a father figure for a lot of us when we started. We were all relatively young, in our early 20s, and he was a person that we did not want to disappoint,” said Taylor.
Taylor took over the reins from Finstrom back in 2017.
“He’s been somebody that I’ve leaned on, somebody I’ve called on for advice over the years, and that leaves a big hole. There’s a lot of years of service and a lot of institutional knowledge that Sheriff Finstrom brought to the table that I really counted on,” said Taylor.
He said it was a somber day at the sheriff’s office.
“A lot of folks here didn’t know him. It’s hard on them as well, because, you know, he was the former sheriff. But definitely those of us that knew Sheriff Finstrom or were hired by Sheriff Finstrom are really taking it hard. It’s, it’s been an emotional time for all of us,” said Taylor.
Among those having a tough time is Detective Lt. Chris Piskor. He said Finstrom hired him back in 1998 as a deputy.
“Gary was a mountain of a man. He was intimidating for me. I was intimidated by him. When you stepped into his office, there was instant respect because he was scary. But he wasn’t scary,” said Piskor.
Piskor said one moment that always stuck with him was one time back in the late 90’s. A deputy was injured in a major incident and Finstrom was speaking to the press.
“He stood out in front of the old sheriff’s office, and he had his hands behind his back as he talked about our injured deputy. And in that moment, he commented that we were all like his sons and that meant a lot,” said Piskor.
Piskor said he was a role model for him and others in law enforcement.
“To have an employer speak like that about his employees, that was the kind of guy Gary was. And I knew I wouldn’t leave here because of him,” said Piskor.
Funeral services are set for 11 am on Saturday July 26th at the Rehoboth Church of Lucas,
with a public visitation set for Friday from 4 to 8 pm at the church.
“The church has seating for about 700 and I’m positive that every one of those will be full and there’ll be people outside. There are hundreds of police officers that probably feel the way that I do about Gary,” said Piskor.
