WHP Lt. Bob Garner set to retire after 24 years

“I have only had this one duty station,” he said.” That is not typical. (While) on the patrol, you usually move around a little bit.”

Garner spent the first 12 years as a patrol trooper, before being promoted in 2006 and spending much of his time in the main office.

“I (have been) responsible for checking their paperwork,” he said. “I have also been responsible for being in charge of major events and working with the other law enforcement agencies.”

Garner, with pictures from the past laying on his desk, said he would likely miss his time on the interstate more than anything.

“I found a great deal of meaning and purpose in the work as a road trooper,” he said. “The more vehicles we contact and more people we can educate about the dangers that are out there, (the better).”

Garner, having seen a great increase in the number of troopers during his time, said the they have recently been able to reach more drivers in the same amount of time.

“When I first started, we covered all of Carbon County and part of Sweetwater County,” he said. “Our division lines when I first started were from mile marker 158 to 280 on the interstate.”

Garner said a new division created in 2004 for Elk Mountain allows troopers to cover less ground.

“We used to have 11 troopers assigned to that,” he said. “Now, we have 11 slotted for this area and eight slotted for the next area over.”

Garner said the increase of technology has also helped allow the public to be more involved in getting the troopers to emergency sites.

“If somebody sees something on the interstate, they can call and we can get there,” he said. “Whereas when I first started, it was common for people to see something and then have to drive all the way into town to get to a phone booth and call.”

Fellow trooper Tyler Chapman looks to possibly fill Garner’s shoes but said whether or not that is the case, no one could ever replace such a leader with his passion.

“More than anybody else I know in this occupation, he really is a servant of the state,” Chapman said. “I think that is a quality that can be lacking in younger people. He has really tried to promote that quality in other people in this division and I think he has been successful with that.”

Chapman has seen people come and go the past 12 years while stationed in Rawlins but said it has been nice to have a consistent leader, such as Garner.

“It has been great having him here, because he is a huge resource of knowledge,” Chapman said. “We have not had to, as a division, adjust to a new supervisor. Not that we are not capable of doing that, but I think we appreciate not having had to do that.”

Garder said he became eligible to move up in rank to a captain 10 years ago but decided he would rather stay local than move locations because of the higher rank.

“Within a year or two after being eligible to be promoted to captain, I decided I really did not want to leave or get too far beyond this,” he said. “I wanted to stay close to the highway and stay close to the troops”

Familiar with Rawlins, Garner said his family has no plans of leaving anytime in the next few years, with a few children still in school.

Garner said he is looking forward to simply spending time around the house and taking some time off.

“I have been working since I was 13, and I have never had more than two weeks off,” he said. “I will (eventually) get back to work. I want to find a new adventure somewhere, learn something new and do something different.”

The Wyoming Highway Patrol will have a retirement open house for the public from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday at the Wyoming Department of Transportation, 301 Airport Road, for people to give Garner their congratulations.