KIEL – The city of Kiel celebrated the name change to the U.S. Post Office on Fremont Street on Friday, Aug. 15, now called the Trooper Trevor J. Casper Post Office Building.
State Trooper Trevor Casper was a Kiel native who died at 21 years old in a shootout with a bank robbery and murder suspect in Fond du Lac on March 24, 2015, while on his first solo assignment.
He was the youngest police officer killed in the line of duty in Wisconsin history.
During the renaming ceremony Aug. 15, U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman said the memorial will ensure Casper’s story will live on to inspire future generations.
“We can never repay such a debt, but we can honor it by renaming the Kiel Post Office in his memory,” Grothman said. “We ensure that every letter sent, every package received will carry with it a reminder of a local hero, a young man who represented the very best of Wisconsin.”
Fond du Lac District Attorney Eric Toney thanked Casper’s parents for allowing Casper’s legacy to be honored through the naming of the post office.
“Anyone that knows Trevor’s sacrifice knows he didn’t just give his life for his friends,” Toney said. “Trevor gave his life for strangers, to people he never met and to people that never met him.”
Retired State Patrol Superintendent Anthony Burrell said naming the post office building, a place that connects people and communities, is a fitting tribute to Casper.
“Every time someone walks into these doors, they will be reminded of the courage and dedication that defines those who wear the badge,” Burrell said. “It will also serve as a permanent reminder of the ultimate sacrifice he (Casper) made for the safety of others.”
The bipartisan bill to rename the Kiel Post Office was introduced in September 2023 by U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman and the entire Wisconsin delegation — representatives Tom Tiffany, Scott Fitzgerald, Derrick Van Orden, Gwen Moore, Bryan Steil, Mike Gallagher and Mark Pocan.
Former President Joe Biden signed into law a bill designating the building’s name change to Trooper Trevor J. Casper Post Office Building Nov. 25, 2024.
Casper graduated from the State Patrol Academy just months before his death and was stationed at the State Trooper Base in Fond du Lac.
Prior to that, he graduated from Lakeshore Technical College with a degree in criminal justice in 2014. He was active in the Color Guard and was president of the LTC student government.
He attended Kiel High School as a teen and was active in the Kiel community through wrestling, soccer and coaching youth sports.
Alisa M. Schafer is a reporter for the Herald Times Reporter in Manitowoc. She can be reached by email at aschafer@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Leaders gather to honor renaming Kiel post office after fallen State Trooper Trevor Casper
Reporting by Alisa M. Schafer, Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter / Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
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