LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A Lubbock man centers himself around giving back. Now, the State of Texas is honoring him for the work he’s done for our region.
Dave Freriks serves of the Volunteer Emergency Disaster Coordinator for more than 30 years. Before that, he was a secret service agent for several decades. All the time he’s spent in the service of others led to Lubbock State Representative Carl Tepper to nominate him for the 42nd Annual Governor’s Volunteer Awards.
The 86-year-old started volunteering with the Texas South Plains of The Salvation Army in 1995. He helped create the chapter’s disaster response program into what it is today. Creating a team of people that has traveled across multiple states and helped nearly 700,000 people.
“We’ll actually be going out into the areas where the disaster occurred and providing whatever they give us to provide when we get there,” Freriks said. “We don’t care who they are. If they ask for it, we give it to them.”
When he was in secret service, Freriks worked in intelligence and served in the northeast before he was transferred to Texas. One of his top cases was when he and his partner stopped a trillion-dollar fraud scheme out of Snyder.
“The one that got me in Playboy magazine was the only gold coin ever made. A 1933, $20 gold coin. It was stolen from the mint,” Freriks said.
However, some of his proudest moments are spent giving back. Freriks described one instance during his disaster response work in which he and his team helped a man who may not have survived without their intervention.
“Now it’s 20 degrees. There’s about a 40 mile an hour wind. Wind chill had to be well below 0,” Freriks said. “He looked to be about 40, laying on one of those wooden benches wearing only a t-shirt and shorts. That’s all he had on. He was like an icicle. We got him in our unit, took him right down to our shelter. And they said later, it took him an hour before he started shaking. But he would have died.”
Freriks said there’s not always a direct reward for helping others, but for him it’s personal.
“You may save their life, that’s nice for them, but it gives you a better feeling,” he said.
Despite his age, Freriks said he has no plans to stop. He is encouraging others in the community to volunteer as well.
“Well, it’s always needed. There are people always needing help,” Freriks said.
As for compensation, Freriks joked he is still waiting.
“I’m still waiting for my first paycheck, but I’ll never get one, but hey, it’s worth it,” he said.
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