Craig Harding- When it comes to helping others, he’s all aboard Since he started in 1983, Craig Harding has been a fixture in the St. George Police Department. As a 33 year veteran, he’s done just about everything. “I’ve been on patrol, drug task force, detective, public information officer, school resource officer, and SWAT,” said Craig. Today you’ll find him doing what he loves most as a cop, riding motorcycles and investigating accident scenes. “They pay me to do that…I’ve got the best job in the world!” he added.

While most of us hope we never encounter a crash on the road, Craig sees them on a regular basis, sometimes multiple times per day. “Sometimes we will go to six or eight crashes per day and it’s hard for us as cops to remember that it’s traumatic for those involved. It’s important that we go to great lengths to be helpful and assist people through those difficult moments,” he continued.

Dealing with the rigors of police work on a regular basis can be stressful but Craig has a hobby that helps him decompress.

“I’ve always liked trains. As a police officer we are a lot of times reactive and we don’t have too much time to be proactive,” Craig said. “When I come home after a stressful day I like to go out to my garage and work on the train sets. I have control over that… and it becomes my little domain.”

Beyond his own solace, Craig uses his hobby to teach lessons to area youth.

“Kids like trains! If I can get them involved in a worthwhile hobby like this they may be less likely to do drugs, get involved in gangs, bully others and instead, work together. We will have three or four kids working together to load and off-load trains during a session,” he recalled.

While adults seem genuinely intrigued by the intricacies of his train sets, it’s interacting with kids, especially his own grandkids that brings him the most satisfaction. “I really like to get kids involved and appeal to them while they’re still impressionable. It shows them how they can invest time and effort in to something and receive the long-term gratification that comes as a result,” Craig concluded.