— Former colleagues and courtroom adversaries of retired Circuit Court Judge Brian Christensen gathered Tuesday to celebrate his enduring impact on the state justice system by forging reforms to connect defendants, particularly juveniles, to community resources. Through the district attorney’s office, Christensen started or helped develop programs like the Children’s Advocacy Project, Youth Diversion Program, Adult Drug Court. Retired Judge Brian Christensen and Marilyn Brown at the Tate Pumphouse on 1/27/26 (Gregory Hirst, Oil City News)“I just had the privilege of putting it together and hoping for the best,” Christensen said of the Diversion program to the attendees at the Tate Pumphouse on Tuesday. “Some of these kids would think they were losers until we made them go to school,” Christensen said. “’Again, thank you for time and your service to the community.’”Christensen told Oil City News that spending time with grandkids is the highlight of his retirement.