Personal Reflections of a Wild West City Honorary Deputy Turned Social Worker

When I was the Director of Social Services in a small, southern nursing home it was part of my job to interview all of the incoming residents. One particular day I was interviewing an elderly man from New Jersey. He was a tall man with snow white hair and a sturdy frame.

As he sat in my office he unconsciously flipped a little Sheriff’s badge repetitively between his weathered fingers. Of course I asked him about the badge and to my surprise he revealed to me that “back in the day” he was one of the Sheriffs at Wild West City in Netcong, New Jersey.

His revelation was a watershed moment. It caused the conversation to turn more animated when together we realized that I had been one of his many “Honorary Deputies” so long ago. I remember, after the interview, reflecting on how odd it was that certain moments in our life can bring us full circle.

As a child visiting Wild West City, I remember him as the brave Sheriff that held our hands and helped us catch the bad guys. He was the one who told his entire posse of pint-sized deputies to “Eat our vegetables”, “Mind our Ma and Pa” and “Obey the law.”

Now, thirty some years and thousands of miles later, the tables were turned and the cowgirl turned social worker had the opportunity to hold his hand and help him face something much bigger than a few dirty desperadoes.

Although he knew he was dying, it did not dampen his enthusiasm for life. Right before he passed away, in true Wild West City fashion, he presented his “Honorary Deputy” with one final gift. It was a small cross he had fashioned out of reindeer antler adorned with a small, silver nugget; items he had saved from his time as Wild West City Sheriff.

And as he had done when I was but a child, the Sheriff reminded me to “Eat my vegetables” and “Obey the law” before he left this mortal coil for parts unknown. It was to be my final, and perhaps most poignant, Wild West City memory.

Today there is a new Sheriff in town and the Wild West City shows in Netcong go on. I will always cherish my experiences as one of the city’s “Honorary Deputies” and hope that others will have the opportunity to do the same for many generations to come.