Springfield Police Officer Assists Elderly Man Lost on Township Road

For a cop, doing a good job often means locking up a bad guy. But sometimes it means keeping an old man company at Dunkin’ Donuts.

Last month, a 93-year-old man got lost trying to find Newark Airport. Shortly before 2 a.m., after hearing that he had not arrived at the airport to pick up his daughter, his oldest granddaughter called his cell phone. He was disoriented, but the granddaughter was able to piece together enough of what he said to place him in Springfield.

Unwilling to hang up on her grandfather, the granddaughter picked up a second phone and called Springfield police station.

The desk sergeant who answered said an officer had already found her grandfather sitting alone in his car, and was currently with him. 

That’s when the granddaughter realized she could hear an unfamiliar voice speaking from her grandfather's cell. Springfield Police Officer Anthony Reimer had taken the phone from the grandfather and said that while he was safe, he was in no shape to drive to the airport. 

The granddaughter lived about an hour away, and told the officer it would take some time to get there. The officer said he was going to have the grandfather follow him to the Dunkin’ Donuts, which was open 24 hours, and have him wait for her there. 

 The granddaughter was about halfway to Springfield when Officer Reimer called her to say he had to leave the grandfather to respond to another call. Still, the grandfather was at the D&D when she arrived.

All of the information above was taken from a letter written by the granddaughter to police department. She made a point to praise Officer Reimer for treating her grandfather with patience and dignity, and closed out her note as follows:

“This was my first trip to Springfield. I know nothing of the town or its people. What I have learned, first hand, is the caliber of its police force.”