CROTHERSVILLE

Soon after applying for an officer opening at the Crothersville Police Department, Josh Powers received a call about taking an agility test and going through interviews.

He wound up being one of three finalists for the job and was interviewed on a Friday morning, found out he was chosen in the afternoon and was sworn in that evening.

On Nov. 3, he officially began his service as the town’s fourth full-time officer.

“There weren’t a lot of words because it’s something I’ve always wanted,” the 34-year-old Scottsburg resident said. “Before that, my father-in-law is a pastor and we prayed about it, and basically, if it was a job that was meant for me, then that’s where we would go from there. It meant everything — a complete life change.”

His wife, Kara, and sons, Braxton and Quinton, and a friend who is a police officer and former Walmart coworker attended his swearing-in at Crothersville Town Hall.

“At the time, I didn’t feel anything because it happened unbelievably fast,” Powers said. “I’ve worked at Walmart, which has always been a security blanket for over half of my life. Then when it came true, it’s hard to describe. It felt great, though. The next day, I woke up and was like, ‘Am I dreaming? No. That happened.’”

Powers has a year from his hire date to attend the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Plainfield. The town covers all of those expenses.

With his father in the military, Powers grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, and attended school there until he was 12. He and his father and brother then moved to Scottsburg, which was close to his father’s hometown of Marysville.

Powers graduated from Scottsburg High School in 2002 and then went to the University of Southern Indiana for a couple of years to study elementary education.

He began working at Walmart as a summer job, and it turned into a 17½-year career.

During that time, he worked at six different stores in southern Indiana, spending his last six months as an assistant manager at the Seymour store.

From that job, he said he learned how to work with the public and handle high-stress situations.

“There are times when you’re the only manager and you’re in charge of a $90 million store and 300-some associates on top of all of the public that is in there,” Powers said. “It helps deal with ever-changing situations.”

Powers also spent time working in loss prevention, which allowed him to interact with law enforcement.

“It piqued my interest,” he said. “It also taught me how to diffuse situations.”

Powers said transferring to the Seymour store wasn’t a willing move and he was very comfortable where he was before, so he started looking at other job opportunities.

He was guided toward a longtime interest: Law enforcement.

“Originally, I was just going to quit and go work anywhere, just to do anything,” he said. “Then my wife said, ‘Why don’t you go after what you’ve always wanted to do?’”

He applied at the Scottsburg Police Department after hearing there were three officer openings and wound up as an alternate.

Then he found out about an opening in Crothersville. He applied, took the agility test and interviewed with Browning and the town council.

Ultimately, he said his work history of having one job for so long helped him be the one they chose.

Powers then began doing ridealongs with the other officers.

“It is everything I’ve wanted so far,” he said. “It’s everything I thought it was going to be and then some.”

On his first day, he and another officer helped an elderly man who was stuck under his house. The man was able to call 911 before his cellphone lost battery power.

“Luckily, we found him and got him out of there,” Powers said. “In one day of doing that, it had more fulfillment in my life than almost 18 years (at his previous job).”

He will continue to train, get on-the-job experience and serve the community until he goes to the academy.

“I like the small community,” he said. “I consider Scottsburg a small community that I grew up in. I kind of like that feel. Nothing against big towns, but the smaller towns kind of have their appeal in that sense.”

He said he is excited about this next step in his life.

“I just had my second son, so with that being said, you always want something your kids can be proud of,” he said. “I know being proud of your parents going and making a living and keeping a roof over your head is awesome, but there’s always that other factor of, ‘Hey, not only am I proud of Dad, I’m proud of him serving and protecting the community.’ That means something to me.”

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Name: Josh Powers

Age: 34

Hometown: Scottsburg

Residence: Scottsburg

Education: Scottsburg High School (2002)

Occupation: Officer with the Crothersville Police Department

Family: Wife, Kara Powers; sons, Braxton Powers and Quinton Powers

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