He’s a gatekeeper at West Branch. One of first faces people see when seeking help from police. His name is Fred Freeman, and Fred’s job is to listen, learn, and assess.

“I think of it as triage…nobody comes in here happy,” said Freeman.

The 82-year-old is a former engineer, and he treats his second career like a real job. Except it’s not.

Fred is a volunteer.

He may not wear a badge, but Freeman is regarded as a major asset behind the counter.

He’s been on the job for nearly 15 years.

“I think it's exceptionally rare. I can't think of a person who puts in that kind of volunteer time,” said front counter supervisor Constable Erika Fryk.

“Knowing Fred's going to be here helps us to know that we're going to get the opportunity to focus on the police work that we have ongoing.”

Fred never expected to be an EPS volunteer after retirement. In fact, he almost quit after his first shift, but he came back and decided to stay.

“People need three things in life to be happy: one to be loved, something to do, something to look forward to. And this gives me all of that,” said Freeman.

West Branch Patrol members recently gathered to pay tribute to the man with over 9,000 hours of volunteer work. Fred didn’t stay long. He seems to be more comfortable behind the front counter than in the spotlight.

“These guys treat me with a lot of respect. Everybody around here does. And that's really hard to replace. That makes you feel like you're part of a team,” said Fred.