Thorp Native Frenette Steps in as
Commander of the State Patrol

The Thorp Courier (Thorp, WI)
June 23, 2010
Transcribed by Dolores Mohr Kenyon

When the youth of Thorp share a dream, they go out and make it happen – just look at Captain Jeff Frenette, the Thorp native who has stepped up to take command of the State Patrol’s Northwest Region, posting in Eau Claire and Spooner.
 
When Frenette was a child, he knew he wanted nothing more than to be in law enforcement. According to Terry Biddle, a friend of Frenette’s brother and a Thorp Police officer, at age 11 or 12, “He told me, ‘I want to be a cop one day,’ as Biddle took him on a ride through the carwash in the squad car.”
 
Years later, Biddle went on to work for the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Department and Frenette came to him wearing his police uniform.  “I was so impressed that he followed through with his dream,” said Biddle, who retired from law enforcement after his 20-plus-year career.
 
Frenette, now 51, took over as commander of the agency’s 20-county Northwest Region, filling the shoes of retired Captain Doug Notbohm in August, adding to his position as State Patrol’s North Central Region, which he took in 1998 until May 9 when Lt. Tim Carnahan was promoted to captain and assumed command there.
 
“I’m glad to be back,” said Frenette, the son of Eileen and the late Bernard Frenette of Thorp.
 
Frenette’s career in law enforcement began at the Thorp Police Department, working part-time until he earned his college degree.  After graduating from the Wisconsin State Patrol Academy in June of 1982, he was assigned as a motor carrier inspector, working the Chippewa and Menomonie scales and focusing on truck size, weight, loads, and vehicle equipment laws.  In 1983, Frenette was hired as a State Trooper in Eau Claire County, keeping his eye on Interstate 94.
 
“Working the interstate was a great experience,” he said.  “You learn quickly how to effectively manage traffic emergencies on a regular basis.”
 
While working as a trooper, Frenette also spent years working as a recruiter, background investigator, media liaison, and field training officer.
 
In 1988, Frenette was promoted to sergeant and was assigned to District 7 of the State Patrol, based in Spooner where he supervised troopers in three counties.  After approximately a year, he returned to Eau Claire County and later worked in Chippewa, Clark, and Taylor counties.  Eight years later, Frenette was promoted to lieutenant and moved to the former District 4 to be based out of Wausau, where he was soon named captain and district commander.
 
While Frenette, his wife, Sara, and their daughter, Gina, found it hard to leave Wausau, they commented that they always had plans to move closer to grandparents – his mother living here in Thorp and Sara’s mother living in Alma Center.  “My roots are here, and it’s a great place to work and live,” said Frenette, who claimed he liked the idea of returning to where his career began.