HENRIETTA, N.Y. — Deputy Nicholas Starr just arrived at work on a cold morning in January.

The beginning of his shift starts out routine, going through his car to make sure he has everything he needs for the day.

But once he puts the key in the car and hits the road, the life of a sheriff’s deputy is anything but routine. From one day to the next, he never knows what the day will reveal.  

Deputy Starr has been with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office for five years. He mainly patrols around the Henrietta area. He says as a deputy, he covers a lot of ground.

“From here I can see any jobs that are going on within the county, city, town. I run it to see what’s pending and holding for the B zone area," said Starr. 

And on this particular day, it was a relatively slow one as Deputy Starr conducted just a few traffic stops. He says this year the department has been focused on community policing. The department's goal is to educate people before penalizing them.

“Everyone doesn’t need a ticket. Everyone doesn’t need to be stopped, but they just need to know we are out here just to make sure the roads are safe for everybody," said Starr. 

Working as a deputy during a pandemic has been challenging. He says he even caught COVID-19 himself. 

“It’s just been different. Everybody’s on edge. Everyone is concerned with basic interactions with people. It’s just an unfortunate circumstance that has affected us all," said Starr.

Despite all of the challenges, Deputy Starr says he loves his job. 

“When people call 911 it’s for their worst day and we get to go there and be that saving grace that tries to help them, so it’s got its own perks in that alone," said Starr. 

After a few hours of patrolling, he heads back into the office, and his duty is complete for the day.