Burton and K-9 Winter

My name is Burton “Burt” Crary. I was born in Fargo, ND on July 15, 1970. My parents are Vincent and Becky Crary. I have one sister, Jennifer. I am married to Susie Crary and we have one son, Jacksyn. I also have an older son, Bryan. I was raised in Detroit Lakes, MN where my father and mother ran a livestock supply store. My father used to do “ride alongs”

with the Becker County Sheriff’s Department and I became interested in law enforcement at the age of 15. My father became a volunteer part-time licensed deputy with Becker County

Auxiliary Police. I joined the Law Enforcement Explorers program and began doing

“ride alongs” with both the Becker County Sheriff’s Department and the Detroit Lakes Police Department at age 15. I observed and was a part of many different incidents over the

next five years. I saw crashes, foot pursuits, high speed chases and many other incidents. I assisted with the 4th of July celebrations and We Fest over the next couple of years.

I graduated from Detroit Lakes High School in 1988. I went to Bemidji State University the following school year and did not do well academically. I moved to the Moorhead/Fargo area and worked in manufacturing for a year then went to Alexandria Technical College for Law Enforcement the following year(1990-1992).

I was licensed part-time between my first and second years of Alexandria Tech School through the Becker County Auxiliary

Police and spent many hours riding along with deputies and police officers.In my second year of tech school, I was hired by the town of

Clarissa, MN as a part-time police officer. During my tenure with Clarissa, I was involved in many incidents, including my second day on my own working the “Blizzard of 1991”. Nothing like driving a 1991 Chevrolet Caprice rear-wheel drive vehicle in 8 to 10 inches of snow. I completed tech school and passed my full-time POST licensing. I was hired by the town of Wadena and a short time later by the

town of Menahga. In June of 1994 I was hired by Alexandria Police Department and

started an almost 20 year career with Alex PD. During my time at Alex PD, I was involved in many incidents including crashes, domestics, medicals and worked three years in the narcotics task force, and four years on SWAT.

In 2005, I crashed my snowmobile in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and should have died but I survived and spent seven days in Marquette Hospital and 3 Months and 1 Day off of work to recover. I returned to work later that year. In 2009 I went through a divorce and was married later that year to my wife Susie. We have a blended family with Susie having

two older children and I had an older son, we have a now 16 year old son together. Susie is a dog groomer by trade and has just

started a crafting business. Jacksyn is a hockey goalie for a metro high school. My older son Bryan is working to get his law

enforcement certification and has been in the guard since high school. In January of 2014, I quit Alexandria PD after being hired by

the Minnesota State Patrol. I was 43 years old when I went to the academy. I graduated from the academy and have worked in the metro area since. In 2016 to 2019, I worked narcotics, in 2020, was involved in the riots in the Minneapolis area and in 2022 I returned to working narcotics. I am planning to retire in August of 2025. Susie found my dog,

“Winter” at the Animal Humane Society after we had to put our Golden Doodle down in early 2020. Winter has become my “ride or

die” dog and has visited many hockey rinks through the years and loves his pup cups.A current member of Soldiers 6 stated I should apply and here I am. I am looking forward to having Winter be able to spend more time with me and his presence is very calming when things get a bit overwhelming, but as a Husky, he can be a challenge also. They say “Huskies are never running away from you but toward

their next adventure”. I look forward to this new adventure. I also am looking forward

to retirement.