• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Advertise
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Subscribe
American Police Beat

American Police Beat Magazine

Law Enforcement Publication

  • Home
  • Leadership
    • Go that extra mile with a smile
      Improving the promotional process for supervisors
      Developing an ethics-centered police department
      Leadership without the family factor is not leadership
      Prozac saved my career, and possibly my life
  • Topics
    • Leadership
      • Go that extra mile with a smile
        Improving the promotional process for supervisors
        Developing an ethics-centered police department
        Leadership without the family factor is not leadership
        Prozac saved my career, and possibly my life
    • Editor’s Picks
      • Getting ahead of the story
        A state in crisis
        Historic win for public servants
        California Highway Patrol officer saves pilot moments before explosion
        Combating false information on your agency’s social media
    • On the Job
      • No case too cold
        Summer is coming
        Securing the Texas border one K-9 team at a time
        Empowering through experience
        Philadelphia Amtrack officer’s quick actions saves conductor’s...
    • Labor
      • Insufficient police staffing continues throughout the U.S.
        The righteous battle
        Recruitment and retention
        Austin police chief aims to end officer shortage as recruitment...
        Dallas City Council approves increased hiring goal for police...
    • Tech
      • Telegram investigations
        Florida sheriff’s office deploys cutting-edge forensic tool to...
        A new chapter for Utah law enforcement
        Is AI the future of report writing?
        Interagency communication in the age of email, YouTube and Zoom
    • Training
      • Off duty, but never off guard
        Meeting training needs on a limited budget
        Be a thermostat, not a thermometer
        Duty knives: Practical or just “tacticool”
        Dry-fire practice doesn’t need to be boring
    • Policy
      • Michigan Supreme Court: Marijuana odor alone no longer justifies...
        Milwaukee P.D. and schools clash over SROs
        Seattle Police Department launches new plan to curb violent crime
        Buffer-zone law blocked in Louisiana
        Dakota’s Law: Pensions for police dogs?
    • Health/Wellness
      • Texas sheriff’s office hit with series of suicides
        The tyranny of memories
        “Why are you mad at me?”
        Tired of being tired?
        Keeping your relationship resilient
    • Community
      • Battle of the Badges baseball game to support injured Missouri officer
        Temple University Police celebrate 7-year-old’s support with...
        A local problem with a statewide solution
        From traffic stops to tip-offs: Iowa officer becomes basketball...
        A state in crisis
    • Offbeat
      • Not eggzactly a perfect heist
        Pizza … with a side of alligator?
        Wisconsin man charged with impersonating Border Patrol agent twice in...
        Only in California?
        Durango, Colorado, police hop into action after unusual 9-1-1 call
    • We Remember
      • Honoring Fallen Heroes
        What’s with the white chairs?
        The pain and sorrow of loss
        A cop and his car
        A dream of remembrance
    • HOT Mail
      • The War on Cops Continues Unabated
  • On the Job
    • No case too cold
      Summer is coming
      Securing the Texas border one K-9 team at a time
      Empowering through experience
      Philadelphia Amtrack officer’s quick actions saves conductor’s...
  • Labor
    • Insufficient police staffing continues throughout the U.S.
      The righteous battle
      Recruitment and retention
      Austin police chief aims to end officer shortage as recruitment...
      Dallas City Council approves increased hiring goal for police...
  • Tech
    • Telegram investigations
      Florida sheriff’s office deploys cutting-edge forensic tool to...
      A new chapter for Utah law enforcement
      Is AI the future of report writing?
      Interagency communication in the age of email, YouTube and Zoom
  • Training
    • Off duty, but never off guard
      Meeting training needs on a limited budget
      Be a thermostat, not a thermometer
      Duty knives: Practical or just “tacticool”
      Dry-fire practice doesn’t need to be boring
  • Policy
    • Michigan Supreme Court: Marijuana odor alone no longer justifies...
      Milwaukee P.D. and schools clash over SROs
      Seattle Police Department launches new plan to curb violent crime
      Buffer-zone law blocked in Louisiana
      Dakota’s Law: Pensions for police dogs?
  • Health/Wellness
    • Texas sheriff’s office hit with series of suicides
      The tyranny of memories
      “Why are you mad at me?”
      Tired of being tired?
      Keeping your relationship resilient
  • Community
    • Battle of the Badges baseball game to support injured Missouri officer
      Temple University Police celebrate 7-year-old’s support with...
      A local problem with a statewide solution
      From traffic stops to tip-offs: Iowa officer becomes basketball...
      A state in crisis
  • Offbeat
    • Not eggzactly a perfect heist
      Pizza … with a side of alligator?
      Wisconsin man charged with impersonating Border Patrol agent twice in...
      Only in California?
      Durango, Colorado, police hop into action after unusual 9-1-1 call
  • We Remember
    • Honoring Fallen Heroes
      What’s with the white chairs?
      The pain and sorrow of loss
      A cop and his car
      A dream of remembrance
  • HOT Mail
    • The War on Cops Continues Unabated
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
Search

Community

Hobbyist collects almost 6,000 first responder patches

APB Team Published October 2, 2021 @ 6:00 am PDT

iStock.com/Vilches

South Carolina resident Bob Fry began collecting police patches in 1985 when he received his first one. Now, he has exactly 5,669 patches from different law enforcement and fire agencies.

Fry, a former EMT and dispatcher who retired from the Aiken Department of Public Safety in 2018, started collecting patches from agencies across the country when he was 42.

Fry has a number of ways of getting patches, from going to departments and asking for them to trading with other collectors, or sometimes just getting lucky when they show up on his doorstep in an anonymous package.

 “I’ve had patches show up in brown paper on envelopes at my front door. I don’t question how they got there,” he told the Charlotte Observer.

Fry also goes to shows to see others’ collections and trade with fellow hobbyists.

“There are shows all over the nation,” he said. “I’ve been to shows here in South Carolina [and] Georgia.”

Fry said that even his collection pales compared to those of some of his friends. Still, his collection often gets a surprised reaction.

“I’ve got friends with over 77,000 [patches]. But most people are surprised. I even get the wow factor from some of the smaller police departments that I’ve traded with,” he said.

Fry said that police departments are more hesitant to give out patches these days due to fear of officer impersonations.

“With the state the country’s in right now, it’s even worse,” Fry said. “There are certain departments that will say they do not honor patch requests because they have found their patches on eBay, which is a no-no. It’s a big issue. That’s why I don’t get into badges at all — because that’s the No. 1 way to impersonate an officer.”

Fry explained that the best part of his hobby is getting to socialize with others who share a similar interest.

“I enjoy meeting people and trading patches, war stories and whatever else,” he said.

Fry also makes sure to prioritize local agencies.

“I had all of the law enforcement [patches] in Aiken County and now I have all of the fire department patches. The last patch I needed was Wagener, which I got earlier this year,” Fry said.

Fry’s favorite patch is one he got from a friend.

“She brought me back a total of 38 patches from departments and one of the patches was a U.S. Marshals patch. When I saw that, I almost fell off the chair,” he said. “It’s a Badgerland Fugitive Apprehension Squad patch from Wisconsin — I’ve seen it online, but I have never seen it in anybody else’s collections. Those are the kind of patches I like to get because the feds tend to be a little bit tough about releasing patches.”

Most of Fry’s patches are in storage, but he keeps his favorites on display boards in his garage. He hopes to buy another house and convert it into a display area with patches covering all the walls.

“It would be nice to show people and refer to them when I need them,” he said.

Categories: Community Tags: Aiken County, display, impersonation, garage, badge, South Carolina, law enforcement patch, hobbyist, hobby, collection

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Honoring Fallen Heroes
  • What’s with the white chairs?
  • The pain and sorrow of loss
  • A cop and his car
  • No case too cold
  • Texas sheriff’s office hit with series of suicides
  • Summer is coming
  • Off duty, but never off guard
  • The tyranny of memories
  • Insufficient police staffing continues throughout the U.S.

Footer

Our Mission
To serve as a trusted voice of the nation’s law enforcement community, providing informative, entertaining and inspiring content on interesting and engaging topics affecting peace officers today.

Contact us: info@apbweb.com | (800) 234-0056.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Categories

  • Editor’s Picks
  • On the Job
  • Labor
  • Tech
  • Training
  • Policy
  • Health/Wellness
  • Community
  • Offbeat
  • We Remember
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Events

Editor’s Picks

Getting ahead of the story

Getting ahead of the story

February 17, 2025

A state in crisis

A state in crisis

February 15, 2025

Historic win for public servants

Historic win for public servants

February 13, 2025

California Highway Patrol officer saves pilot moments...

California Highway Patrol officer saves pilot moments...

February 03, 2025

Policies | Consent Preferences | Copyright © 2025 APB Media, LLC | Website design, development and maintenance by 911MEDIA

Open

Subscribe

Close

Receive the latest news and updates from American Police Beat directly to your inbox!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.