The Montezuma County Board of County Commissioners welcomed the new county attorney at their meeting on Nov. 19.
His name is Stephen Tarnowski, and he filled the vacancy Ian MacLaren left when he became a Montezuma County Court judge last month.
“Attorney Tarnowski – did I say that right?” asked County Clerk Kim Percell as she called roll at that meeting.
“You did,” Tarnowski said.
For the past three years, Tarnowski had worked for the county as the assistant county attorney, primarily juggling cases from the Department of Social Services.
His promotion left a vacancy in that position, which the county is looking to fill.
“It’ll be helpful for me to get someone in there, I’m still basically doing both things,” said Tarnowski. “The stuff I’m newly responsible for and my old obligations.”
He said he really enjoys working at the county, and is grateful for his new, expanded role.
“The thing I like most about this job is having more responsibility for things going on in the county and getting to work with more of the staff and the board,” said Tarnowski. “In the abstract, that’s why I was interested in going to law school and doing legal work in the first place.”
Tarnowski grew up overseas, in Germany, since his dad moved there in 1980 to teach on a military base.
His dad also has ties to the East Coast of America, and so he ended up studying for four years at The College of New Jersey, where he was on the swim team.
“That was a funny connection Ian and I had. We both went to college on the East Coast, and swam in college on the East Coast,” Tarnowski said.
Though their time didn’t overlap, Tarnowski and MacLaren coincidentally both worked at Wildwood Crest Beach Patrol on the southern tip of New Jersey, too.
His first visit to the Centennial State was during college, to visit friends. From eight to 18, he had lived on an Air Force base, and so he had made several connections to Colorado Springs over the years.
“I thought wow, this is way cooler than New Jersey,” he recalled.
So he packed his bags and got his law degree at CU Boulder. There, he was introduced to rock climbing, which was “the thing to do.”
Plus, he wasn’t swimming anymore and had an influx of free time.
“Climbing was a cool way to go to different places and see different things in a way that you really can’t when you’re swimming,” Tarnowski said.
One place climbing took him was the Four Corners.
And then he met his wife, Emilee, who has family in Durango, and they eventually moved to Farmington. For a year, he commuted to Cortez but they eventually moved here on account of the “small town feel.”
Together, they spend a lot of time birding and hiking, Tarnowski said.
“It’s an honor to be in this position. I take pride in working hard and doing a good job, and I hope to serve the board primarily well. Cause that’s really the point of this job, is to serve the board,” said Tarnowski.
“It’s what I want to do with my legal career. I’m real happy to be here.”
