Lt. Darrell Fellows and his son Cpl. Mike Fellows have transitioned from defending the country around the world to serving Bingham County in the sheriff’s office. In doing so they have shifted from being first responders globally to being first responders locally.

The elder Fellows joined the Marine Corps in 1975 and found that being a Marine fit him “like a glove.” He found the Corps challenging, the leadership training crucial and the structure supportive. He quickly moved up the ranks from an enlisted private until he retired 30 years later as a Master Gunnery Sergeant, one of the highest enlisted levels in the Corps.

Early in his service, while stationed in Blackfoot as a recruiter, he noticed a new Marine recruit from Pocatello, Tammie, and made sure he kept track of her progress through high school and boot camp. They were married shortly thereafter, forming a dual Marine family.

When their family began to grow, Tammie retired from the Corps, but she continued to support Darrell and the Marine Corp. As Darrell says, “You are always a Marine. You can’t take the Corps out of the Marine.”

After retiring from the military, one of the options they entertained was to return to Blackfoot and fortunately for the county that is what the Fellows did. He has found the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office to be similar to the Corps and loves being able to continue to serve and make a difference.

Though the structure of the sheriff’s office was familiar, it wasn’t easy to start again at the beginning position of patrol deputy. After completing the Peace Officer and Standards Training, known as POST, and with his leadership training and experience from the Marines, Darrell again rose quickly in the chain of command to be a sergeant and then a lieutenant.

Currently his “mission” is running the jail and supervising 35 deputies to do so. With the new jail expansion, Darrell is a part of funding, recruiting and training 16 more deputies to manage potentially 73 more offenders.

Darrell and Tammie’s son, Mike, has joined his father as a corporal in managing the jail — again, first through a military path. After being raised in a Marine household that moved around the world every two to three years, Mike considered his options after high school.

Though he was offered support for college or other career paths, after consideration he chose to join the Army.

Enlisting as infantry, Mike served in Italy, Georgia and two tours in Iraq. As Mike says, like most young infantry recruits he was “young and dumb” until reality hit during combat. After losing friends and being wounded himself, the earlier eagerness for firefights cooled to the determination to “get the job done well.”

After almost nine years, Mike left the army with a Purple Heart and looked for a new livelihood in Georgia where he had been stationed earlier. It was also where he had met his wife, Mardonna, and where they had married. When those employment plans didn’t pan out his father lured him back to Blackfoot for an open position in the sheriff’s office.

Beginning at entry level as a patrol deputy, Mike also found his military training helped him fit in, adjust to working with citizens and advance in rank and responsibilities. After almost 10 years he is now a corporal and a member of the Community Emergency Response Team, known as the CERT team, which deals with jail disturbances.

Both Darrell and Mike find their work in the Sheriff’s Office fulfilling and look forward to many more years of service in Bingham County.

This weekend there are several other ways to honor our veterans. On Saturday, the Greater Blackfoot Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Veteran’s Day Salute that will begin at 7 p.m. in the Blackfoot Performing Arts Center located at 870 S. Fisher Ave.

On Veterans Day on Nov. 11, there is a Shoshone-Bannock traditional sunrise service and breakfast starting at 7 a.m. at the Shoshone-Bannock Jr/Sr High School at 50 S. Hi-Line Road. Later that morning Blackfoot High School will have its annual Veterans Day assembly that is open to the public. It will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Blackfoot Performing Arts Center.

Our veterans left no doubt that we are protected, let’s leave no doubt that we are grateful for their service and sacrifices.