Caterson receives Cheney's dispatcher of the year award

Next month will mark Cheney police dispatcher Don Caterson's 19th year with the department. That longevity brings with it a lot of experience he has imparted to newer dispatchers and even some officers, one of the reasons why Caterson has been named Cheney's Dispatcher of the Year.

For the Bridgeport, Conn. native, it's one of four jobs he's had since graduating from high school in 1969. Caterson first enlisted in the U.S Air Force, serving four years as a security officer.

After that, he served in the U.S. Navy from 1975 – 1994, the first half as an electronics technician and the final nine years as a career counselor and retention program manager. His last shipboard assignment was on the U.S.S. Camden, a refueling ship stationed in Bremerton, Wash. that also carried supplies, ammunition and armaments.

"It would've been a big bang if anything would've happened with it," Caterson said.

Caterson came to Cheney in the mid-1990s when Eastern Washington University created its physical therapy program. His wife wanted to enroll in the department and obtain a major, but ended up earning biology and teaching degrees instead.

In the meantime, Caterson was hired at the student loan company Sallie Mae, the only 9 to 5, Monday through Friday job he has had. Thinking he would retire from the company, he instead found himself looking for work when new technology led the company to shut down its Spokane and Massachusetts offices in 1998.

Caterson did some temporary work for a bit, and one day read an ad in the Cheney Free Press for a police department dispatcher.

"I looked at it and said, 'wow, I can do that," he said. "Evidently I can do the job because I'm still here."

That was February 1999. Since then, the couple have raised two children in Cheney while Don has taken on additional roles, such as an "assistant TAC" for the past 10 years.

TAC stands for "terminal agency coordinator," which is the person responsible for making sure an agency follows specific laws and regulations for entering data into the department's system. Cheney uses the ACCESS system to enter and retrieve data such as criminal histories, warrants, driving records and identifying characteristics of individuals from state and national systems.

"I am that official person, but Don has helped me out for years with a bunch of the quality control for our entries," the department's director of communications, Cathy Munoz, said in an email.

"It is a huge help and a big reason why when we get audited, we do so well," she added.

"There's a lot of attention to details when you're entering things," Caterson added. "We go through everything with a fine-toothed comb and make sure they haven't missed anything."

Caterson said the process is time consuming on both sides, entry and verification.

Caterson has also served as the department's trainer, instructing all four of the current dispatchers. The only person he hasn't trained is Munoz, and there's a reason.

"The thing is, I was trained the right way," Caterson said with a chuckle. "Cathy trained me, and she used to beat me up."

Caterson said he's looking forward to retirement, which isn't far off, although he wouldn't reveal any dates. He and his wife intend to make use of his lifetime senior's pass to the county's national parks, visiting places he hasn't yet such as Zion and Bryce Canyon.

"We're going to travel, go to music shows," he added. "Bands we like that don't come to Spokane."

While the work schedule can be challenging, Caterson said he's enjoyed serving as a Cheney dispatcher.

"You never know what's coming next," he said. "Every time the phone rings, or somebody is on the radio, it's something different. And, I really, really like the people I work with."

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.