Feel Good Friday: Former Police officers riding along with current police officers in Rice Lake
RICE LAKE, Wis. (WLAX/WEUX) – Cop cars were spotted outside of a senior living home in Rice Lake, not for an emergency but rather a commemoration. Two “Our House Senior Living” residents were recognized for their service as police officers; ride-along style. For Feel Good Friday, First News at Nine’s Ellie Pomerleau and photojournalist Jeff Ralph have the story.
“Do you miss it? Do you still think about it, Tom?”
“Oh, sure.”
Red and blue lights lit up the parking lot outside of Our House Senior Living as police officers prepared to honor two residents who used to wear the badge. Rice Lake Police Chief, Steve Roux, explains, “It’s an absolute noble profession. Um, it’s very respected. We love what we do. We love to serve, and meeting with these two men for a short period of time I could sense their passion and their love for serving. And it’s just great to interact and spend a little time and it’s really neat to have them living right now in our community.”
Memory care residents Tom Hogen and Rob Dorbert left the building around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday (4/23/24) seated in the front of Rice Lake Police squad cars to ride along with current officers in celebration of their many years of service.
Hogen was a police officer for around 30 years. He served for the St. Paul Police Force in Minnesota. His son Todd Hogen says one of his father’s most honorable moments on the job was when he saved the life of an infant, “He was on his way home. It was one of his last weeks on the job. It was a blizzard, and… it was on Highway 61… (he was) on his way to Cottage Grove from St. Paul. A horrible accident occurred. He stopped. The baby was trapped. I’m so proud of him. He rescued the baby. Brought it back to life.”
Dorbert also took his rightful spot in the front (seat) of a squad car. He was a police officer in Florida for sixteen years.
The Residence Director, Brynn Hojem, joined him on the ride-along. She said he reflected on his service, “Memories came back to him and that was pretty cool. He said his favorite thing was serving the community and helping the children. And we were actually going around at the school that time.”
For the Three Rice Lake Police Officers who came to our house, including the chief, the event allowed them to connect with the residents over a shared love of serving the community. Chief Roux says, “When you love this job, your passion continues well beyond retirement.”
Hojem says the ride along is a part of Our House’s focus on the legacy of their residents. Their goal is to bring their residents new experiences.
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