Troy Schantz always wanted to be an Emmaus police officer. Troy’s mother told Schantz she still remembers his third grade elementary school teacher relating that aspiration when Troy got up in an introductory show and tell at the age of about eight.

The Emmaus native went through the East Penn district schools and graduated in 1986 from Emmaus High School. Schantz accepted a college internship in the Emmaus Police Department in 1989 and was hired in 1991.

Schantz said becoming a police officer did not present the culture shock that becoming a law enforcement officer presents to some first-time officers.

“I grew up in Emmaus and was familiar with the area culture and many of the borough’s residents. Having to police the people you grew up with was mostly easy,” he said, “but in some situations it presented its own difficulties.”

He progressed in the Emmaus Police Department ranks and became a sergeant in 2001. After being on the streets for many years, Schantz was tasked with greater administrative duties in 2016 when Palmer became chief and introduced efficiencies that freed up patrol officers to spend more time on the streets.

When asked whether he planned any changes in the way the police department operated, Schantz said “I don’t think we need a whole lot of adjustment. The state accreditation process we introduced a number of years ago, and the renewal process we recently completed has assured us that we are running on all cylinders.

“What I will be concentrating on in the next seven months is to keep officer morale up. There are a lot of little things that assure we get up every day and look forward to our jobs,” he said.

He refers to the next seven months “because I’ve known from the day I started this job, that our contracts would provide a ‘date certain’ for retirement eligibility and an exit date. That date,” he said, “will arrive on Jan. 31, 2022.” He had accrued 30 years of service and chosen a deferred departure option.

With that in mind, Schantz said, “I feel like I have been given the keys to a Cadillac and told ‘don’t wreck it,” he mused.

Looking back over his career Schantz said he mostly remembers the good he has been able to accomplish. “The media will publicize the bad things that happen in law enforcement,” Schantz commented. “But I’ve seen more good days than bad. We treat our citizens well, and the community in turn provides us the respect that allows us to do a good job. I’m proud that I work here and residents seem to feel good about us as we serve and protect.”

Schantz said he believes “community relations is a ‘two-way street.’ We strive to treat them well and they in turn give us respect. But all that aside, whether we’re praised or condemned, we still do our job.”

Schantz also credits the small-town atmosphere provided by life in Emmaus Borough versus the stresses in large cities reported every day in the media. “Where else can a citizen go to the police station on short notice and be able to sit down with the police chief and share what they have on their mind?

“Our community gives us a lot of leeway to police this town and our officers go out of their way to help people both mentally and emotionally when life gets tough. That’s the job I signed up for, and it’s going to be a bittersweet time when my exit day gets here,” he said.