LAFOURCHE PARISH, La. — At 68 years old, Thomas Fortenberry was enjoying his retirement. Plus, he already had gone through multiple career changes.
"I was a police officer before I was mayor of my city in Mississippi, and I was a truck driver, and what I recently retired from I was general manager of a truck driving company," Fortenberry said.
But, the LaRose resident said retirement wasn't doing it for him.
"I’ve still got gas in my tank. I want to be able to be a positive part of my community. You can only play golf and fish so much I know that sounds strange," he said.
He didn't want to simply go back to work. He wanted to make a difference. So, when he ran into a longtime acquaintance, Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre, Fortenberry told him he wanted to join the team.
"I wanted to be part of the solution not the problem," he said. "[Webre] said come on he said we’ll find a place for you, but I kind of thought maybe a crossing guard or something."
Fortneberry enrolled in the training academy. Before his first day though, he knew he'd have to get physically ready, so he started training at Crossfit Brackish.
"I really think she tried to kill me. [My trainer] would push me and push me and push me. One time, I left my phone there, and I didn't want to go back and get it because I was scared she’d make me do something else but anything worth anything is hard work and determination," Fortenberry said.
The gym owner, Marcie Dufrene, says she was initially confused, but after hearing Fortenberry's goal, she wanted to help him achieve it.
"He was retired so I was like, why would you want to put yourself through that? But it was a goal he had," Dufrene said. "We did a lot of push-ups, a lot of arms, a lot of overhead presses, bench presses."
He accomplished it. In November, he graduated from the academy as a deputy and even did 68 push-ups, one for each year he's been alive. Now, he wears his title proudly and says he hopes to inspire everyone, showing it's never too late.
"If you feel like you do have gas in your tank, for my fellow senior citizens, get off the couch and do it," he said.
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