The Deschutes County sheriff’s main office will be renamed in honor of the person being credited with restoring trust in the agency — former Sheriff Les Stiles, who died earlier this year.

Shane Nelson, the current sheriff, will host a ceremony Wednesday to rename the building the Les Stiles Justice Center.

Stiles, who was sheriff from 2001-2007, died Jan. 6 at his home in Caldwell, Idaho, after suffering a series of lung ailments. He was 77.

Carol Stiles, the former sheriff’s widow, said Nelson contacted her a few weeks before her husband died.

“When my husband was ill in December, shortly before he passed away, Shane sent us a letter,” said Carol Stiles. “Shane told Les that he had made the decision to this naming in Les’ honor. True to my husband’s nature, he of course, gasped in shock and said, ‘I don’t deserve this.’ And the reason is, he always gave credit to all of the people on his team who helped make things happen.”

When Stiles was sheriff, Deschutes County voters approved permanent funding for the office with the creation of two taxing districts. This helped stabilize the department, said a family friend, Lawnae Hunter, especially in the wake of his predecessor who pleaded guilty to embezzlement charges and was sentenced to 33 months in prison.

Not only did Stiles stabilize the sheriff’s office financially, he restored trust, Hunter said.

“What Les really was, was an amazing leader,” Hunter said. “He really taught leadership to his force.”

That leadership lives on today, she said.

Jim Porter, who worked in the Bend Police department from 1991 until his retirement in 2020 as police chief, worked with Stiles throughout their careers in law enforcement.

“When I became chief, he was one of very few people I reached out to and said, ‘Help me get grounded here; give me what you think I should be looking for,’” Porter said.

Stiles was like a mentor to him, Porter said.

“He came along when, probably, the public trust in the sheriff’s office was at its lowest point ever,” Porter said. “He just brought stability to it; he brought economic stability; he got them academically certified, accredited, which they hadn’t been.”

Academic accreditation can be an 18-month or 24-month long task, Porter explained. It’s a momentous action that professionalizes an agency, he said.

Before serving as sheriff, Stiles was a lieutenant with the Bend Police Department and taught law enforcement classes at Central Oregon Community College for 17 years.

Stiles founded the Central Oregon Partnerships for Youth, a sheriff’s office program, with his wife. He also served as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Army as a Green Beret.

After retirement, he owned his own consulting business Legacy Leadership, and later served as the Prineville Police Chief. He also taught leadership classes in the Concordia MBA program.

The dedication ceremony will start at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Visitors are directed to park in parking lot above the main lot. Golf carts will be available to take them to the main event.

Nelson did not respond to requests for comment for this story.