Having joined the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office as a patrolman after his 27-year military career drew to a close, Steve Adcox has traded one uniform for another.

Adcox retired as senior operations sergeant for the Louisiana National Guard’s 205th Engineer Battalion in February. He was in that position five years, and his duties encompassed taking care of training, deployments and day-to-day operations at the Bogalusa headquarters facility.

Additionally, he managed the logistical aspects of emergency operations for events such as floods or hurricanes, coordinating the movement of troops and equipment and determined what would be required to get special projects around the state completed.

During his 27 years in the military, including 20 years of active duty service, Adcox traveled to such countries as Korea and Germany and to numerous military installations across the United States. He’s also had two deployments. The first was for Operation Desert Storm and the latest was to Afghanistan.

The 205th deployed to Kuwait right around the time Adcox retired. He said those soldiers are getting close to coming home, as their arrival is expected to take place next month.

During his military career Adcox lived in different places in the U.S. About 15 years ago he was presented the opportunity to take a position with the Louisiana National Guard, working out of Bogalusa. He said that allowed him to continue his active duty time while being close to home and family.

Born in Franklinton, Adcox moved away when he was young. He grew up in Denham Springs and graduated from Denham Springs High School. He tried college for a while, then decided to take the military avenue, continuing a family tradition of service in the Army.

Adcox’s grandfather served during World War II, and his father was in the military as well. Additionally, his son, Blake, joined the Army almost four years ago, choosing the career that he knew as a way of life. He recently returned from Iraq and is now stationed in Alaska.

Adcox said he is proud his son made that decision. He said Blake enjoys serving in the Army, and he is doing well in the career field he picked, airborne infan-try. He said it’s a tough job, one he had during his career.

Having changed his military occupational specialty several times, Adcox worked with areas such as engineering, infantry and armor.

“Whatever opportunity they gave me to be able to train or learn, I took it,” he said, adding his experience with the infantry aspect of the military is the one that has helped the most with his current job.

In October 2012, while he was on transition leave from the military, Adcox was offered the position at the Sheriff’s Office. He said he accepted it and started right away.

As a patrolman, Adcox works primarily on the west side of the parish with criminal patrol, traffic violations, serving warrants and answering calls. He said it’s interesting work, and it keeps him on his toes. He said he’s also had to learn there is no such thing as a routine call.

Through his move to law enforcement, Adcox said he is still working with an organization that has a military structure.

“It gives me an opportunity to serve and do something in a different arena, from being a soldier to being a law enforcement officer,” he said. “It’s the same — just a different uniform.”

Tomorrow, Veterans Day, is a time when people all across America honor veterans for their sacrifices and their service to their country.

Adcox, whose wife, Leanne, works for the Clerk of Court’s office, said it was an honor to serve for 27 years. Being away from home, friends and family for sometimes years at a time is a sacrifice that each member of the military makes, and he said he doesn’t expect any kind of special recognition on Veterans Day.

“It’s a job that we chose, and it’s one that we love to do — to protect our country, our family and our way of life,” he said.