Sandwich police Sgt. Dan Whitecotton enjoys serving his hometown

SANDWICH – Sandwich police Sgt. Dan Whitecotton wanted to do his part after the attack on the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001.

Whitecotton was a junior at Sandwich High School at the time.

“I was 17 when it happened,” he said. “There was no question that I wanted to serve and give back to the country. I wanted to give something above myself to serve the country. Going into the military, I knew that would probably also be a foot into the door of civilian law enforcement.”

After graduating from high school, Whitecotton became involved in the U.S. Air Force Security Forces. After going through basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, he stayed there for three months of Security Forces training.

“Essentially, that was a military version of a police academy,” Whitecotton said.

He also served for a year at Ramstein Air Base, a U.S. Air Force base in Germany. Part of his duties included protecting nuclear weapons at the base.

Whitecotton has been involved in law enforcement since September 2005. After his military service, he started with the Sheridan Police Department, working there for about two years.

“They sent me through the police academy,” he said.

He has been with the Sandwich Police Department for more than 17 years. As someone who was born and raised in Sandwich, Whitecotton feels privileged to be able to serve the community.

“It’s certainly an honor,” he said. “It means a lot to me.”

The 40-year-old Whitecotton is a 2003 Sandwich High School graduate and the son of Sandwich City Council 4th Ward Alderman Rick Whitecotton.

Dan Whitecotton also lives in Sandwich. He and his wife have three children.

While at the Sandwich Police Department, he has worked his way up through the ranks. Dan served as a Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) officer for five years.

The program aims to prevent or reduce drug abuse and violence among children and youth.

“I still will run into kids who I got to teach and they remember me,” Dan said. “Building those relationships, that was the best thing about that. I would go and play kickball or something at recess and the kids would all come over and want to say hi and give you a fist bump. It was really cool.”

One of the things Dan likes best about his job is being able to serve and protect.

“I like building those relationships and getting to help people,” he said.

He has helped his hometown in other ways as well, including being a football coach. Sandwich Police Chief Kevin Senne said Dan Whitecotton’s knowledge and experience has helped in many ways, including overseeing the department’s field training program.

“He’s a great addition to the police department,” Senne said.