
<p>The Skaneateles Police Department makes around five arrests a year in the quaint village in the Finger Lakes. Now more focused on community building than fighting crime, the three retired state troopers who work as village police officers often spend their days pouring coffee through the Coffee with a Cop program.</p>



<p></p>


Joe McNally

Heather Ainsworth

10.24.25 - Officer Percy Clarke sits at the end of a cul de sac in Skaneateles, New York on October 24, 2025. Officer Clarke spends his one day of work per week patroling the local Skaneateles neighborhoods. "Not much happens around here, but we want to make sure everything is in order," Clarke said. After retiring from duty in Marcellus, New York, Officer Clarke enjoys the monotony of a Friday afternoon on the Finger Lakes. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.24.25 - Lieutenant Mike Strangeway speaks with a Skaneateles resident on October 24, 2025. In a town with only five arrests a year, sometimes the most action Lieutenant Strangeway sees in a day is a carbon monoxide alarm running out of batteries in a local neighborhood. "Val didn't need us here, but it is always good to show up so they know we are always here," Lutenient Strangeway said. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.24.25 - Lieutenant Mike Strangeway directs traffic during the annual Costume Parade in Skaneateles, New York on October 25, 2025. For Lieutenant Strangeway, Skaneateles has become his home. "I get my haircut here, I go to the dentist here, I take my wife to dinner here," Lieutenant Strangeway said. Even though he has only been here a short time, he has embedded himself into every corner of the community. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.25.25 - On a Saturday at Clover's Diner, it is common to see Chief Scott Heggelke and Lieutenant Mike Strangeway pouring coffee during the Coffee from a Cop event that Chief Heggelke helped start six years ago. Chief Heggelke's main focus is making sure the community knows they are there to help and are to be trusted, an ideal he hopes to pass down to Lieutenant Strangeway when he takes over the station. "It's the way life is," Heggelke said, "this is the way we are, on duty or not." (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.25.25 - Lieutenant Mike Strangeway fistbumps a young child dressed up as Bumble-Bee during the annual Costume Parade in Skaneateles, New York on October 25, 2025. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.25.25 - Lutenient Mike Strangeway's hat sits on the dash of the singular police car the station shares on October 25, 2025 in Skaneateles, New York. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.24.25 - Even off duty, Chief Scott Heggelke needs to be on. As a minor town celebrity, he never knows who he might run into, like Channel 9 Anchor Carrie Lazarus and wife of the JMA Wireless founder, Kim Mezzalingue. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.25.25 - Lieutenant Mike Strangeway and Chief Scott Heggelke interact with patrons at Clover's Diner in Skaneateles, New York on October 25, 2025. No matter who walks in, Lieutenant Strangeway and Chief Heggelke treat them all the same. "I treat everyone in this town like my mother lives here, they all deserve the same respect," Chief Heggelke said. (Photo by Jack Henry)

10.24.25 - Friends are common to see on the streets of Skaneateles, like Jimmy, whom Officer Percy Clarke knows from Doug's Fish Fry. No resident is ever a stranger to Officer Clarke — they are all family. (Photo by Jack Henry)

The Alexia Fall Workshop

« Back to Stories

WHAT CRIME?

Produced by

Jack Henry

Coached by

Joe McNally

Heather Ainsworth