(STURGIS) – Two familiar faces are assuming new duties for the City of Sturgis.

Sturgis City Manager Michael Hughes announced that Interim Public Safety Director Ryan Banaszak has been appointed the new Public Safety Director, and Deputy Fire Chief Andrew Strudwick has been appointed to be the new Deputy Director of Public Safety, effective September 30.

Since 2005, the Sturgis Police and Fire Departments have been managed by a public safety administrative structure, with the positions of Director, Deputy Police Chief and Deputy Fire Chief. Hughes says with minor modifications of position titles and responsibilities, the Public Safety Administrative structure will now include a Director, Deputy Director and an Administrative Police Lieutenant.

Banaszak has been with the Sturgis Police Department for 15 years, the last five as the Deputy Police Chief. He was named the Interim Public Safety Director in early September. Banaszak has also served as a Detective Sergeant, narcotics officer, road patrol sergeant and the Sturgis Schools' Resource Officer. He has also served as an on call firefighter for Sturgis since 2010.

Strudwick has been with the Sturgis Fire Department since 2000, serving as a Firefighter, EMT, Haz-Mat Technician and since 2012 the Deputy Fire Chief. He graduated from the Kellogg Community College Police Academy in 2016 and completed the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association’s Executive Leadership Development Training in 2018.