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When the youth of Thorp share a dream, they go out and make it happen
– just look at Captain Jeff Frenette, the Thorp native who has stepped
up to take command of the State Patrol’s Northwest Region, posting in
Eau Claire and Spooner.
When Frenette was a child, he knew he
wanted nothing more than to be in law enforcement. According to Terry
Biddle, a friend of Frenette’s brother and a Thorp Police officer, at
age 11 or 12, “He told me, ‘I want to be a cop one day,’ as Biddle took
him on a ride through the carwash in the squad car.”
Years
later, Biddle went on to work for the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s
Department and Frenette came to him wearing his police uniform. “I
was so impressed that he followed through with his dream,” said Biddle,
who retired from law enforcement after his 20-plus-year career.
Frenette, now 51, took over as commander of the agency’s 20-county
Northwest Region, filling the shoes of retired Captain Doug Notbohm in
August, adding to his position as State Patrol’s North Central Region,
which he took in 1998 until May 9 when Lt. Tim Carnahan was promoted to
captain and assumed command there.
“I’m glad to be back,” said
Frenette, the son of Eileen and the late Bernard Frenette of Thorp.
Frenette’s career in law enforcement began at the Thorp Police
Department, working part-time until he earned his college degree.
After graduating from the Wisconsin State Patrol Academy in June of
1982, he was assigned as a motor carrier inspector, working the Chippewa
and Menomonie scales and focusing on truck size, weight, loads, and
vehicle equipment laws. In 1983, Frenette was hired as a State
Trooper in Eau Claire County, keeping his eye on Interstate 94.
“Working the interstate was a great experience,” he said. “You
learn quickly how to effectively manage traffic emergencies on a regular
basis.”
While working as a trooper, Frenette also spent years
working as a recruiter, background investigator, media liaison, and
field training officer.
In 1988, Frenette was promoted to
sergeant and was assigned to District 7 of the State Patrol, based in
Spooner where he supervised troopers in three counties. After
approximately a year, he returned to Eau Claire County and later worked
in Chippewa, Clark, and Taylor counties. Eight years later, Frenette
was promoted to lieutenant and moved to the former District 4 to be
based out of Wausau, where he was soon named captain and district
commander.
While Frenette, his wife, Sara, and their daughter,
Gina, found it hard to leave Wausau, they commented that they always had
plans to move closer to grandparents – his mother living here in Thorp
and Sara’s mother living in Alma Center. “My roots are here, and
it’s a great place to work and live,” said Frenette, who claimed he
liked the idea of returning to where his career began.
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