DAPHNE, Alabama – The streets of Daphne looked a lot different when Cpl. Donald Bettner began patrolling them in 1983. Back then, the city was home to population of just over 3,000 people and the law was enforced by a five-man police department. Literally speaking, U.S. 98 was a two-lane highway without traffic lights.

Now, with more than 21,000 residents, Daphne is Baldwin County’s largest municipality, U.S. 98 is a four-lane with a light at every major intersection, and when Bettner retires Dec. 28, the police department will still have more than 40 sworn officers.

“He’s been there long enough that it seems like everyone in the city knows him,” said Claudia Callaway, Bettner’s sister. “And he’s seen a lot of change. We come from a law enforcement family, but as far as being a street cop, he’s probably got more experience than anyone else.”

Callaway said their father was an honorary deputy for the Sheriff’s flotilla. Their brother Joe is a former DEA and customs agent. Their other brother Charles was a bounty hunter before working for the Prichard Police Department. Bettner’s son Richard is in the mounted patrol unit of the Mobile Police Department. His nephew is a sergeant at the Spanish Fort Police Department. His brother-in-law, Callaway’s husband, is an investigator with the Gulf Shore Police Department

“All the boys and some of the children have gone into law enforcement,” Callaway said. “I guess it’s in their blood, it’s something they love to do.”

Former Daphne Police Chief Joe Hall, who retired in 2003 after leading the department for 36 years, said Bettner was always an asset to the force.

“He is one of the best I’ve ever worked with,” Hall said. “He grew up in Daphne, and people trusted him, so he developed relationships within the community that were incredibly valuable. As an officer, he felt he was part of the community and he was full of compassion. He made friends with some of the people he arrested, and sometimes he would have people thanking him while he was writing them a ticket. That’s unusual in that line of work.”

Bettner is more humble about his career, saying he originally took the opportunity to become a cop because there wasn’t much more out there for him to do.

“I was born and raised on a fishing camp on the causeway, fishing and repairing boats, but there wasn’t much money in it,” he said. “I worked at Sears for a little while, but I didn’t want to do that my whole life. I thought working for the department would be interesting. I wanted to try to make a difference. I wouldn’t say I’ve had a remarkable career, it was just line-of-duty type stuff. ”

His lifelong love of fishing prompted Bettner to plan a fishing excursion for special needs children more than 10 years ago, and he has been teaching children the joy of angling ever since.

 “We still do the annual trip – I think this will be our 13^th year,” Bettner said. “It’s just a good feeling to see those kids have such a good time, and it’s something simple we can do. I enjoy that more than anything.”

Current Police Chief David Carpenter, who commended Bettner for “serving the citizens of Daphne for over 28 years fighting crime and making this city a better place to live,” was also impressed by his dedication to the special needs children.

“The one job Donald has done that will always stand out to me is him taking the special needs kids fishing every year. He does not do this just because it might be part of his job but because he cares about these kids and putting a smile on their face gives him some satisfaction that he has made a difference in someone’s life and that is what this job is about,” Carpenter said.

Bettner said he’s not planning on a sedentary retirement. He’ll continue to hunt and fish, but he’s immediately looking forward to a road trip with his old friend Gary Armstrong, a local attorney.

“He’s looking for some property out West, so we’re going to Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and California,” Bettner said.