In an emotional ceremony during Monday’s City Council meeting, Kewanee greeted a new police chief and deputy chief.

Chief Nicholas Welgat’s resignation due to health issues became official at Monday’s meeting. Welgat, the chief for the past three years, has been battling cancer.

The council has approved the appointment of Deputy Chief Stephen Kijanowski as the police department’s new chief, and the appointment of Michael Minx as the new deputy chief.

Before reading a prepared statement, Welgat said he feared he wouldn’t be able to make it through the whole thing.

“I’m a crier,” he said.

But with a couple of pauses to collect himself, he did manage to complete the statement.

Before a council chambers filled with his family and friends, Welgat expressed his gratitude to Mayor Gary Moore, City Manager Gary Bradley and the City Council for their support since his cancer diagnosis. He said from his tenure as chief he has some “sweet memories, and a tinge of regret.”

He said he had hoped for a long career as chief, but “Life has other plans.”

Now, he said, he will devote “every ounce of my energy” to his family and loved ones.

As chief, Welgat said, he is proud to have built a “team of capable individuals” on the police force. and is happy to be leaving the police department in good hands.

Minx, Welgat said, is an “exceptional candidate” for the deputy chief position.

And Welgat said Kijanowski is “nothing short of extraordinary,” and is his “ideal successor.”

“He is without a doubt the greatest police officer I have ever worked with,” Welgat said.

He said knowing Kijanowski will be taking over the chief position will make his retirement easier.

Welgat also had praise for his parents, and his wife Shelly, who he said is “the cornerstone of my life.”