Kyle Freeberg has been with the Alaska Wildlife Troopers for two years. He's been stationed in Fairbanks since joining, but soon he and his family will be moving south to join the Wrangell Community. Being a wildlife trooper, he said, was a position he had not really planned on having, but he has fallen in love with the job.
"I've been kind of a laborer, in some form of construction, all my life," he said. "I was a welder fabricator before becoming a trooper ... Now that I'm here it feels like something I was made for."
Freeberg said that he is moving to Wrangell because it was time to find a new station. There has been a big hiring push with the wildlife troopers, he explained, and they were trying to get more senior members assigned to different parts of the state. He chose Wrangell while the choice was still his to make before he was stationed elsewhere.
There were several things that appealed to Freeberg and his family. He and his wife have always wanted to live on the coast and said that several wildlife troopers in other Southeast Alaskan towns have fallen in love with their communities and never plan to leave. Freeberg said he was aware that Wrangell has had some trouble with keeping a wildlife trooper in the area long term, but is hopeful that he can change that.
"It sounds like in a lot of these Southeast posts, it just takes the right person," Freeberg said. "It seems to me like Wrangell hasn't found the right trooper yet. I'm hopeful that I am."
As Wrangell's wildlife trooper, Freeberg said that a lot of his job will involve patrolling the logging roads during the hunting seasons. He also said he expects to be spending a lot of time on the water, watching the commercial and sport fishing in the area, as well as moose hunts up the Stikine River. Being stationed in a coastal community will be a new experience, he admitted, so he will be reaching out to other wildlife troopers in the Southeast area for advice. He said he's also going to be listening to local residents to learn more about the town and where he should direct his efforts.
"I'm going to be reaching out to the community, and letting the community help me figure out where I'm most needed," he said.
The Freeberg family will be moving to Wrangell on April 19, and are still keeping their eyes out for housing options. The whole family is excited for the move, Freeberg said, but also nervous. It can be challenging to move to a new town, he said, more so when you work in law enforcement. All in all, though, they are looking forward to living in Wrangell.
"We are excited to plug in, to find out what it's like to be a part of a small fishing town," he said.
Reader Comments(0)