After 25 years of keeping the peace for state government agencies in Carson City, Capitol Police Officer Don Davenport says it's time to do a little fishing.
Davenport, who will turn 55 on Feb. 24, his last workday, is ending a career in law enforcement that has seen many changes, including a burst of growth in the size of Nevada and the size of the Capitol Police force.
When he started in 1975, the agency had six officers. Twenty-five years later, the force has more than quadrupled in size, now boasting 26 officers stationed throughout the state.
"That's the biggest thing," he said, looking across the street to the capitol building. "Everything has changed so much. Way back when, we had to do everything from buffing the floors to cleaning. You name it, we did it."
Davenport served most of his time between the state capitol building, the supreme court building and the attorney general's office. Capitol Police are responsible for security and law enforcement in government buildings.
In preparation for his fateful final day, Davenport and wife Beverly ordered a motor home they expect to be delivered in the near future, just in time to hit the open road.
"We like to go to all the places the RVers go," he said. "We're looking forward to getting up to Gillette (Wyoming) for the RV roundup."
Davenport said he looks forward to many years RVing with Beverly navigating.
The journey that brought Davenport to Carson City started in small town Texas where he grew up in a household with 12 other children. He says by the time he turned 17, he was overdue for a change of scenery. Next stop was Alaska.
"I had never been away from home more than a night and in a matter of a day I was thousands of miles from home," he said. "I guess Texas wasn't big enough."
For 12 years he worked a variety of jobs in fishing and even served in the Navy.
At the age of the 30, Donovan moved to Carson City, Beverly's hometown, to settle down and start his career. Eventually Davenport had one son, and then many years later, a granddaughter.
Donovan said his years in Carson City have been good. As an avid fisherman, he often takes advantage of the access that Carson provides.
"I love everything about it," he said. "I love the lakes, the people I work with and all the interesting people that I have seen over the years."
