Family Man
Embedded Files
Each day, Patrick Boggs has five opportunities to see his daughter during the four-minute class change in the school hallway they share, one as a student, the other as an officer. Whether it’s a hug, conversation or quick hello, they’re always happy to see each other. “I’m tickled to death,” Boggs, 50, said of their chance meetings.
Patrick Boggs, left, hugs his daughter Aleah in the hallway between classes on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025, at Mason County High School in Maysville, Ky. Boggs said that his daughters are not embarrassed of him when walking in the hallway of the school. “They’re not embarrassed to be seen talking to a police officer, especially their dad,” Boggs said.
Boggs, a deputy sheriff, serves as the school resource officer at Mason County High School in Maysville, Kentucky. Previously sheriff of Mason County for more than 17 years, he retired in May 2024. Boggs is proud of his hometown; serving the community was a way to give back, he said. He called being sheriff the “greatest job I’ve ever had.”
“People get to know the person you are, not just the badge or the uniform,” Boggs said.
Patrick Boggs laughs during conversation during the school day on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025, at the cafeteria of Mason County High School in Maysville, Ky. “It takes a special type of personality to be a school resource officer,” Boggs said. “This gives me the opportunity to hopefully build a relationship with the kids that they’ll remember growing up, and when they become adults, it could hopefully change the outlook of law enforcement.”
Three months after his retirement, current Mason County Sheriff Ryan Swolsky called and asked if Boggs would be interested in becoming a school resource officer. In September 2024, with his daughters’ approval, he started the position at the high school.
“I think it’s a huge privilege to work in a place where I get to see my children daily,” Boggs said.
Part of his daily routine, Patrick Boggs pushes the doors, ensuring each is securely locked, to keep students safe while class is in session on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025, at Mason County High School in Maysville, Ky. “This [being school resource officer] is less stressful than being sheriff, I can tell you that, but this is still a stressful job,” Boggs said.
Patrick Boggs smiles as he asks his daughter Aleah about how her day was, riding back to their house in his cruiser. Patrick took a job as the school resource officer. Now in his second year, he enjoys the role even more as he connects with his daughter daily in her freshman year. “My girls, growing up in my house, know that I’m going to do what’s right no matter what,” Boggs said.
Boggs’ oldest daughter, Avra, 18, was a senior when he started the job. His youngest daughter, Aleah, 14, is currently a freshman at the school.
Aleah said she thought it would be weird at first to have her father working at the school, but that it’s actually great to have him there. “My dad is my biggest role model,” she said. “He’s there for all of the moments — the happy, the sad, just when I need him.”
Patrick Boggs, a Catholic, prays and reads his Bible every morning at his house in Maysville, Ky. Shown to the side of the books, his two daughters, Aleah and Avra, are also Catholic. “My beliefs might not be your beliefs,” Boggs said. “But I think anybody with common sense can see that we’re in troubled times, and we need a higher power to believe in and to have faith in.”
Patrick Boggs, right, and his daughter Aleah play one of many games of thumb war while Avra laughs as she reacts after dinner at their house in Maysville, Ky. “They both have qualities from me that stand out,” Boggs said. “Avra being stubborn and not scared to be confrontational. Aleah being emotional and a sweetheart that would do anything for anybody and wants to please.”
A husband and father, Boggs said his family is his everything. “It’s why I exist, to hopefully pass on my faith and pass on my values to my family,” he said, adding that he wants to be there for them no matter what.
Patrick Boggs, left, makes parmesan-crusted chicken for dinner alongside his wife Kristy on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, at their house in Maysville, Ky. The dinner was specially requested by their daughter Avra as she came back to the house for the weekend from being a freshman at Western Kentucky University. “It’s a big change on us having a daughter move out,” Boggs said. “Growing up with her being independent, it was easier. At the same time, I still want her here.”
Patrick Boggs plays with his male golden doodle Jasper, 6, on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025, outside his house in Maysville, Ky. Boggs said that Jasper is the best and smartest dog he’s ever had. “I love all animals just because they’re innocent creatures, and that’s the protective nature of mine,” Boggs said.
“He always gave 110 percent to his job, but as a family, he also somehow gave 110 percent to us as well,” said Boggs’ wife Kristy, 48.
Patrick Boggs, left, watches television alongside his wife Kristy on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, at the basement of their house in Maysville, Ky. “She is a good-hearted person that would do anything for anybody, and just the epitome of a perfect wife,” Boggs said. “And the bonus part was gaining her family when I married her, because they are such good people.”
Before sunrise, Patrick Boggs’ daughter Aleah gets into his cruiser as the two head to school, where she attends and he works, on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025, outside their house in Maysville, Ky. Patrick takes his daughter Aleah to school every morning. “I can’t imagine my life without my wife, or two daughters, or my mother, my father, my in-laws, my brother, my sister,” Boggs said.
Whether it’s his family or the wider community, Boggs said he’s going to help until he’s not able to anymore.
“It’s all about what I can do to help others and instilling that in my daughters,” Boggs said. “That’s something to pass on from my parents to them through me.”
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse