UPPER FREEHOLD — Township officials, friends and colleagues paid tribute to retiring Office of Emergency Management (OEM) Coordinator William Wentzien at the Feb. 2 Township Committee meeting.

Wentzien, 84, is retiring after working for the township in this capacity for 24 years. Mayor LoriSue Horsnall Mount had Wentzien sit on the dais with the governing body so that friends and colleagues could “roast” him.

Wentzien said he had a great staff, along with working with all of the township’s first responders, such as the Hope Fire Company and the Allentown First Aid Squad, the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) and the Monmouth County OEM.

“We were co-workers working together to save lives and protect property,” he said. “Working together as a team made residents more secure in times of emergency.”

Representatives from all of those groups attended the ceremony.

Marlene Donnell, former deputy clerk and deputy OEM coordinator, who had retired to Virginia, came back to honor Wentzien. She said Wentzien’s knowledge and resources were never-ending, adding that he was also like a human GPS for finding shortcuts when traveling the roadways. She recalled a simulated plane crash that took place behind the municipal building, with the area littered with plane and body parts, and the state EMS monitoring the test from above.

“It was a well-planned, coordinated undertaking,” she said. “Upper Freehold was very fortunate to have Bill Wentzien heading the OEM.”

T.J. Wayne, of the NJSP’s OEM, said he came across a lot of municipal OEM coordinators in his career, but Wentzien stood out.

“He has so much history in the town,” he said. “You could always count on Bill.”

Committeeman Stan Moslowski Jr., who served as mayor in 2010, recalled being in Atlantic City when a storm hit the area and he received a phone call from Wentzien around 11 p.m.

Wentzien told him he wanted to close the town down and open shelters due to the storm. Moslowski said he couldn’t do anything, since he was in Atlantic City, noting that he hadn’t gone outside in several hours. He told Wentzien to call then- Deputy Mayor LoriSue Mount about the situation.

“I felt really confident after I got off the phone that the town was in good hands,” he said.

Moslowski added that Wentzien worked many more hours at his job than those for which he was paid. Wentzien remarked that it was a full-time job, and he was on call 24/7.

Township Administrator Dianne Kelly said she and Wentzien began working for the township in the same year.

“I’ve always known you to be knowledgeable, professional and very generous,” she said.

Kelly said talking to Wentzien was always interesting, because he was very involved with the Old Yellow Meeting House and as a Civil War re-enactor.

James Rosenbauer, deputy OEM coordinator, said he spent 41 years in the educational field and three years serving President Richard Nixon in the White House Communications Agency. He has met many distinguished government offi- cials, and places Wentzien at the top of the list, he said.

Deputy Mayor Steve Alexander noted that Wentzien loved his job.

“Unfortunately, nowadays it’s not too often that we see that,” he said. “You prepared for everything, and had the task of preparing for the worst for our residents. We’re all better for it.”

Mount said Wentzien “set the bar for generosity, time and commitment.”

Wentzien replied that he was brought up to believe that if you join an organization, be loyal to it.

“If you have a responsibility, put your best effort in to fulfill it,” he said.

Wentzien’s wife, Ceola, died on New Year’s Day. When asked what he would be doing in retirement, he said that for now, he had to work on her estate matters.