An officer with a diverse level of experience was recently named the new Town Sergeant for Drakes Branch. This officer would be Codey Brooks, a resident of Charlotte Court House who has worked as an officer for Longwood University’s Police Department in Farmville and served overseas in the National Guard in Kosovo and Iraq. He even served a stint at the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office dispatching for the jail.

Brooks graduated from Randolph-Henry High School in 2004, and said the diversity of population and demographics in Drakes Branch has allowed him to gain both more experience and more empathy for his neighbors. “Drakes, you could be dealing with an infant and then dealing with an 89-year-old, so it’s always different,” Brooks said in a Gazette report. “That’s what I like about law enforcement. I like helping the citizens out,” he said.

Though Town Sergeant Tommy Galbreath will be missed, having served over a decade at Drakes Branch before his retirement in December, it’s exciting and reassuring to see Brooks further serve the community and his hometown as Town Sergeant. Somethinghe will do in addition to serving on Longwood’s Police Department.

Brooks, welcome to the department, and we wish the best as you use your skills to do what you enjoy doing.

Emily Hollingsworth is a staff writer for The Charlotte Gazette  and Farmville Newsmedia LLC. Her email address is Emily.Hollingsworth@TheCharlotteGazette.com.