By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Like father, like son. The adage does not always come true but its well underway for the Hanzlick family. Brian Hanzlick has served Central Kansas as game warden with the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks for decades. His son, Hunter, was recently hired to be a certified law enforcement officer and assistant land manager at Cheyenne Bottoms.
"This has been my dream job ever since going to college and working toward my wildlife biology degree," Hunter said. "Growing up here, I've loved it. I shot my first teal at Long Lake at the Bottoms. Moving way, you take for granted what you have at the Bottoms. It's good to be back."
Hanzlick was a multi-sport standout at Hoisington High School, rushing for nearly 1,500 yards and leading the Cardinal football team to a 12-1 record and state semifinal appearance in 2016. After his graduation in 2017, he played football at Baker University before moving on to Fort Hays State University.
After graduating from FHSU, Hunter spent time as a private lands specialist for Pheasants Forever. He also did seasonal work at Cheyenne Bottoms. After spending the past four years at McPherson Valley Wetlands, Hanzlick is coming back home to Barton County to work under Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area Manager Jason Wagner.
"I think every public lands manager in the state, every time there was a job opening, was hoping it was Hunter Hanzlick on the application list," Wagner said. "We had some really strong applicants for that job. A job like working at Cheyenne Bottoms is pretty noteworthy and really desirable, so it wasn't like we were playing into his hand. We had some really strong applicants."
As assistant public lands manager at Cheyenne Bottoms, Hanzlick will do a little of everything. Roughly one-fifth of the job will involve law enforcement, but the brunt of the job will revolve around seasonal work like planting millet to attract birds and helping Wagner with maintenance work.
"It's different each day, and that's what I love about this job," said Hanzlick. "You kind of have a game plan but you never know what's going to come up."
It's been a while since the area had a certified law enforcement officer to enforce the laws. Wagner said most visitors to the Bottoms follow the rules, but other than Hanzlick's 14-week absence to get certified through the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center, it will be nice to have someone in that role, especially when as many as 800 hunters visit the Bottoms each day during hunting season.
"The role in law enforcement is going to vary a little bit depending on the time of year," Wagner said. "This time of year, he's probably not going to be doing as much law enforcement. You may not be writing tons of tickets but just having that presence there prevents a lot of things from happening."