The McEachin family may have the bluest blood in Clayton. Police blue, that is.

Members from three generations have served in law enforcement, and three members of the same family are currently part of the Clayton Police Department. Just a few weeks ago, Whitney, 14, followed in the family tradition when she joined her dad and older brother in the Clayton department.

The family’s patriarch, retired police chief Richard McEachin, originally served as an officer in Antioch. He later became a chief in Kansas and then Washington State before retiring 38 years later. His son, Richard Jr., went on to join Clayton’s police department. Richard Jr.’s children, Richard III and Whitney, have donned the uniforms that identify them as part of Clayton’s elite team of volunteer Police Explorers.

McEachin Jr. described the Explorers program as a win-win situation for its members and the city. “We really rely on those Explorers,” he said. “Being a small department, we need all the help we can get.”

He cited the Explorers’ work at Clayton’s three biggest events, the Art & Wine Festival in May, the 4th of July parade and Oktoberfest.

The volunteer program was brought to Clayton in 1991 by then Sgt. Rich Enea to give local teens insight into the life of a police officer. The senior McEachin says Explorers – and volunteers in general – gain invaluable experience just by the act of giving their time.

Whenever somebody volunteers to help somebody else, it’s a sense of self-satisfaction,” he said. “It’s a feeling that kids who don’t volunteer don’t have.

“Youth who are exposed to all different facets of life pick up, I call them, street skills that they can use to communicate or get by or further themselves in life,” he added.

Richard III (who goes by Trey) is in his third year as an Explorer. Between the Explorers, membership in school choir and band and a part-time job at Burger King, he’s busy. He remains enthusiastic about the Explorers, however.

“I’ve learned a lot of people skills and how to accomplish what needs to be accomplished,” he said.

Although the Explorers are carefully shielded from contentious situations, Trey has seen potentially belligerent suspects calmed down by the officers’ communication skills.

“I’ve seen a lot of tactics, ways of talking in certain situations – convincing people to do what you need them to do,” he reported.

Asked his advice for Whitney, Trey said that paying attention is crucial. “Take notes on everything,” he said. “These cops do not mess around. They know their stuff – they know what they’re doing. You can really learn so much