“No matter where I end up in this organization, (PAL) is going to be my thing. I’m not willing to give it up.” “He gets it, and these officers get it. It’s the right thing to do,” Kustelski added. “They’re a blessing to this neighborhood and this community.” Regardless of his role, Mushatt’s common thread has been his passion for kids and youth programs. “I just feel like I have some things that inspire me,” he said. “I want to help people. I want to try to make things better for people.” That’s driven him since he arrived at Saint John’s. That’s what drives him still. That’s the definition of a real pal.
PAL is organized chaos, but it’s happy chaos. Kids are happy to be there. So are the police officers. Bonds and relationships are being formed that can last a lifetime.
grown steadily, influencing countless kids. Its success and credibility draw from Mushatt’s humble, home-town roots. “He’s from here, born and raised, went to college here and never went far from home and stayed,” Anderson said. “All that speaks to how he feels about what he does and his hometown.”
Photo courtesy of St. Cloud Times
“If somebody asked give me Brett in one word, ‘humble’ is the first word that would come to my head,” added Kustelski, who has been with the Boys & Girls Club for 22 years. “With everything he’s got going for him, he doesn’t carry himself that way. He’s just Brett.”
A driving force Mushatt could end up being St. Cloud’s police chief someday. He probably could be one somewhere already. “I can think of a couple dozen places he can leave here for right now and sit in the (number) one spot,” Anderson said. “No doubt in my mind that he’s got all the credentials.” “In a perfect world, will I be chief here someday? I hope so,” said Mushatt, who also serves on the Boys & Girls Club board. “But I’m also in a position where I can make just as much difference doing what I’m doing right now.
32 SUMMER/FALL 2018
Mushatt (27) celebrates one of his two interceptions during Saint John’s playoff victory over Simpson (Iowa) Nov. 23, 1996 at the Metrodome. Dave DeLand, editorial and content director for SJU Institutional Advancement, is an award-winning writer, guest lecturer at Saint John’s University and former columnist for the St. Cloud Times.