In Arizona, Glendale police were summoned to a 94-year-old man’s home to convince him not to pack up his trailer and drive to Florida. But once Sgt. Jeff Turney arrived at the man’s house and could quickly see that he was a World War II veteran, he realized this was going to be an uphill battle.
Says the officer: “I walked in the door and saw him sitting there and I said, ‘We’re not going to talk any sense into this guy.’”
That “guy” was Howard Benson, who served his country in the U.S. Navy during the war. None of his family lived around him, and police received the call from a concerned family member. Howard was determined to make the move to a Fort Meyers, Florida nursing home from his current Glendale, Arizona home all on his own.
But Sgt. Turney just did not think that was the best thing for everyone concerned. So the officer made a deal with Howard. For a little while every day, he would come over and help Howard pack up his things for the move. Then, when everything was all packed up and ready to go, the sergeant took some time off work so he could drive Howard all the way to his new home in Florida, about 1,400 miles away.
They reached their destination in 4 days, and the sergeant stayed with Howard a little longer, until he felt comfortable with the new facility.
This is one officer who went well above in his duties.
