Trooper measures success through community

If someone is in trouble in the City of Colfax, Washington State Patrol trooper Jim Retzer is ready to help - no matter what time it is.

"One night last year his phone rang at 2 a.m.," WSP Sgt. Brad Hudson said this week. "It was some people in town who had lost their dad who has Alzheimer's disease. ... The guy had said he was going to Post Falls to pick up some fishing stuff, and he never came back."

Instead of calling 911, the family reached out to Retzer at home, and Hudson said their faith in him paid off.

"Jim started using his head (and) pooling his resources," Hudson said. "He started having law enforcement agencies checking along Interstate 90 clear into Montana. He guessed the man had gotten on the freeway going the wrong way."

Soon, the Montana Highway Patrol called to say they had located the subject, who had run out of gas along the highway and was becoming hypothermic in his car. Hudson said it is episodes like that which make Retzer so popular in Colfax.

"If we go to coffee in a restaurant, you can't hardly sit there without groups of people coming up to talk to him," Hudson said. "I'd describe him as 'their' state trooper. ... People in this community trust Jim."

Retzer, 45, said he measures his success as a trooper based upon the relationships he has developed in the Colfax community. The WSP motto is "Service With Humility," and Hudson said the phrase represents a way of life for Retzer.

"I just like helping people out," Retzer said Wednesday at the WSP office in Colfax. "That's my job as a state trooper - community service."

Some citizens develop negative opinions about troopers, who are often seen issuing tickets for infractions along state highways, but Retzer said much of his and his colleagues' time is spent assisting travelers who are stranded or lost.

According to Hudson, Retzer also excels at recognizing and apprehending drunken drivers - another reason he was nominated and selected as District 4 Trooper of the Year this year. Retzer said he was surprised when he was awarded the title in February.

"I just go out and do my job; I don't expect rewards like this," Retzer said. "However, it came about, and I worked hard all my 22 years in my career, so to be recognized like this toward the end is definitely a significant accomplishment."

He is now eligible for the statewide award, but for his district-level achievement among troopers from seven counties he will be given a brand-new unmarked patrol car.

"That is pretty exciting," he said. "I'm looking forward to seeing it."

Retzer has lived in Colfax for 17 years. He grew up in Castle Rock, Wash., then served the U.S. Air Force in Mountain Home, Idaho, for four years before applying at the WSP in Seattle.

"I spent about four years there then transferred here to Colfax," Retzer said Wednesday. "I had, at the time, family that was down in eastern Oregon, and I wanted to get closer to them."

Now he has two children in Colfax and three in Milton-Freewater, Ore., who keep him busy traveling to sporting events and other activities when he isn't on patrol. Retzer also spends his time fishing and hunting, and he takes an annual trip along the Columbia River with his sons.

"That's kind of a 'dad and the boys' type thing," Retzer said. "We get away from mom and the girls."

He always enjoys coming home to Colfax, however, where Retzer said his neighbors and friends provide him with sturdy support network.

"They're very generous," he said. "It's a great community."

Katie Roenigk can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 301, or by email to kroenigk@dnews.com.