By PAUL DAVIS
Outdoors Editor
WAYNE COUNTY, Mo. -- As one long, rewarding career as a conservation agent in Missouri comes to an end, another, full of hope and promise, is just beginning.
After nearly 34 years with the Missouri Department of Conservation, and almost 33 as a conservation agent in Wayne County, Mic Plunkett has driven his final patrol, hung up his hat and signed off as "764" on the radio for the final time.
At the same time, his oldest son, Jacob Plunkett, just graduated from the department's most recent agent training class and has been assigned as the new conservation agent for St. Francois County.
"The old timers used to say 'when it's your time to go, you just know it,'" Mic Plunkett said. "It finally hit me ... I'm ready."
Mic Plunkett spent most of his youth in Poplar Bluff before earning his bachelor's degree at the University of Missouri and working as an hourly employee for MDC's Wildlife Division. In 1985, he graduated from the department's agent training class and was assigned to Wayne County, where he's called home ever since.
"The people have been so good to me through the years," he said.
In a "lot of ways, the job has changed," Plunkett said, recalling the old days of carrying a .357 revolver with an extra six-round dump pouch and being issued portable radios and a bag phone. "The phones worked great, as long as you were in one of two spots in the county where you had reception.
"If you had told me back then that by the end of my career we would be issued enough firepower for a platoon and smartphones that can do incredible things, I would have thought you were joking, but here we are."
What hasn't changed, Plunkett said, are the basic principles.
"You work smarter, not harder," he said, and you treat people right.
"If I could leave behind just a little bit of advice for the new folks, it would be for them to always be respectful and humble," he said.
Over the years, Plunkett said, he's built a lot of relationships throughout the region, and that's what he will miss the most after his retirement.
Getting people involved in the outdoors, Plunkett said, is something he's been passionate about, and he's been instrumental in developing several local programs for new hunters, like MDC's women's rabbit and turkey hunts, youth duck hunts and more.
"I want to be remembered as the guy who wanted to share the outdoors," he said. "Taking young people hunting for the first time or seeing a grandmother harvest her first deer ... those were my favorite moments."
Plunkett credits an understanding family for his success. From sons Lucas and Jacob helping him whenever needed to his wife, Judy Plunkett, always understanding when the telephone rang.
Judy, who Plunkett called his "light in the window at the end of a very long day," was essentially an unpaid department employee for years, putting in a lot of work.
"She always helps at events and has done so much and put in innumerable hours," he said.
Plunkett, who's retirement was effective Tuesday, plans to stay in the community he loves, and he also wants to continue volunteering for MDC's women's hunts and the mobility-impaired deer hunt at Wappapello Lake.
And now, he's passing the torch to son Jacob Plunkett, who will continue the family's tradition of service to the public in a job he's keenly familiar with.
"As early as I can remember, I wanted to be an agent," said Jacob Plunkett, who's been on more ride-alongs and spotlighting patrols with his dad growing up than he can remember. "For me, it's not another career - it's a lifestyle. If I never became an agent, I'd regret it my whole life."
Mic Plunkett said he and Jacob had many talks over the years about the job, and while his son tried a few other jobs, he never lost sight of his original goal.
"We're incredibly proud of him," Mic Plunkett said. "To make this decision is heartwarming."
Jacob Plunkett graduated from Puxico High School in 2013 and Southeast Missouri State University in December 2016, and now he'll make the hills outside of Bismarck, Mo., his new home.
"It's been fun," Jacob Plunkett said of his first few weeks on the job, "but I'm not on my own yet."
He'll work alongside a field training agent for six to eight weeks before he's turned loose.
"I'm looking forward to the law enforcement aspect," he said. "I spent a lot of time with dad learning."
Jacob Plunkett said St. Francois is "going to be a busy county," and he's learning the roads and adjusting quickly, while his wife, Holly Plunkett, continues to work toward her teaching degree.
"We enjoy it there," Jacob Plunkett said, "but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to move back home someday."
As you would expect, the young agent calls his father almost daily, seeking advice or just telling him about his day. With three-plus decades of experience, Mic Plunkett said, he's more than happy to listen.
"I have no doubt he'll do just fine in his career," Mic Plunkett said.