Choosing a path toward law enforcement is not uncommon, but the type of investment one Eastland Career Center student has made while on his journey certainly is unique.
Darin Gearheart ‘24, a recent graduate from Groveport Madison High School, has wanted to be a police officer from the time he was a boy.
His dream has manifested itself in ways you would expect, such as joining the Criminal Justice program at Eastland Career Center, working for Highland Protection and enlisting in the Army where he plans to serve as a Military Police Specialist, as well as unconventional ways like starting a law enforcement/military patch collection.
His collection began in May 2021 during Police Week. A parade of central Ohio law enforcement agencies passed through Groveport. Darin was putting another passion to work — photography — by taking pictures of the parade, when he encountered Chief Deputy Jim Gilbert with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.
“He gave me my first challenge coin and explained that I could collect these or patches,” said Darin.
At last count, his patch collection numbers nearly 350. There are a few that stand out to him, including those from Honolulu and Hawaii County because that’s where he was born. Another from Colorado Springs, Colorado, because that’s the farthest he’s personally traveled for a patch. And one of his latest additions is a K-9 unit patch from Ukraine that a friend of his gave him after a trip there.
The majority of his patches come from across Ohio. He requests them through written letters explaining who he is and describing his collection. He said from time to time, he will even include an extra patch he’s received. A bonus of his collection is that he now has a list of contacts and mentors in law enforcement stretching across the state, which he hopes will help him in his future endeavors.
After following in the footsteps of his mom and serving in the Army, he plans to return to Ohio, complete the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy (OPOTA), and become a police officer doing street patrol. He also has aspirations to one day have a K-9 unit.
He is grateful for the foundation Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools has given him. He said without the opportunities offered through Eastland Career Center, he would not be where or who he is today. He cites a public speaking class as one example of an opportunity he wouldn’t have had had he stayed at his home school. The culminating project involved speaking about a passion project. He researched affordable K-9 vests and created a mock website, presentation, and video of what K-9s go through in law enforcement to make his case.
Darin is doing more than collecting patches. He’s proving that there is more than one way to suit up for a career in law enforcement.
