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The historic town of Jim Thorpe originally was known as Mauch Chunk, or "Mountain of the Sleeping Bear." Nicknamed the "Switzerland of America" during the 1800s, the town changed its name to Jim Thorpe in 1954, a tribute to the Olympic gold medalist and athlete who had died the previous year at 64. A memorial statue and monument can be found on the eastern side of Jim Thorpe, not far from where Burnett built a home in 1998 with the expectation that he’d retire there.
Burnett, who graduated from Father Judge High School in 1969, enrolled at the Police Academy five years later, when Frank L. Rizzo was mayor and Joe O’Neill was the city’s police commissioner.
As a rookie, Burnett worked in the 5th Police District and later moved to the 12th as a member of the department’s Mounted Patrol. He continued with the unit while assigned to the 25th district from 1985 to 1988.
Burnett’s partner was Officer Bill McCarthy, but the two were working different shifts on Sept. 22, 1987, when McCarthy and his horse were struck and killed by a drunken driver while on traffic duty during a Grateful Dead concert at the Spectrum.
"That was tough," Burnett said, explaining that the 31-year-old McCarthy had a wife and four children.
Departmental cutbacks later resulted in Burnett’s assignment to street patrol. He arrived at the 2nd district in 1990, and two years later was involved in an off-duty apprehension of two robbery suspects who instigated a shootout with police.
There had been a series of robberies of people using ATM machines.
"I bumped into them at the Roosevelt Mall," Burnett said of the suspects, "followed them to the 8200 block of Roosevelt Boulevard, ended up getting involved in a shootout and shot one of them in the hand."
Officers nabbed the man as he crossed the Boulevard and headed for Nazareth Hospital. The other suspect fled in a vehicle but was stopped at Tyson and Rowland avenues.
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These days, Burnett’s life is much calmer. He still gets down to Philly about once a month, to visit his sons and to hook up with his buddies at the Chickie’s and Pete’s Café at Frankford and Robbins avenues.
His home in Jim Thorpe is adorned with memories of Philadelphia — a Phillies flag out front, a painting of Boathouse Row, and mementos of the Gilham Street home where he and Kathy raised their three boys, Sean, a police officer in the 25th district, Brian, a sales representative, and Patrick, a teacher in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Other keepsakes include a painting of his horse from his mounted unit days, Dutch Song, and a painting of a police locker room. Next to Burnett’s locker are those of his partners over the years.
Of all those partners, Burnett said, his favorite was an officer named John Keane.
"We worked together for thirteen years. He was a gentleman. John and I walked the beat from Adams and the Boulevard to Rising Sun Avenue. When we worked there was very little crime," Burnett said, recalling an era of less violence.
Burnett remains a fan of foot patrols as the best way to deter crime. He understands, though, that decreased police manpower doesn’t always make that possible these days.
"But we still have the same number of politicians," he said.
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These days Burnett works for Youth Services Agency, a non-profit organization that for 27 years has offered services to school districts and the juvenile justice system. The ex-policeman is involved with a so-called boot camp to aid kids who made a wrong turn and received court-mandated placement to get on the right path.
According to the agency’s Web site, its ACT programs — Adventure Challenge Therapy — are a therapeutic alternative to more restrictive or institutional residential placements. The programs emphasize adventure, education and community service.
Burnett likes interacting with the kids, especially helping those who are making a transition from city life to the rural setting.
"They’re out of their environment. I know the neighborhoods they’re coming from," he explained.
For example, for a lot of youngsters, living in cabins in wooded settings can be a culture shock. While driving one boy from Philadelphia to a medical appointment, Burnett recalled, they passed a dead deer on the side of the road.
The kid didn’t know what it was.
"He asked if it was a kangaroo," Burnett said.
But it’s all part of Burnett’s own transition to life in Jim Thorpe, a move this "city boy" has never regretted.
"There’s a lot of history . . . a lot of Irish history here," he said.
Burnett is proud to be associated with the Ancient Order of Hibernians, a fraternal Irish Catholic organization founded more that 100 years ago on the principles of friendship and unity.
The Molly Maguire Pub is Jim Thorpe’s Irish watering hole, where the Guinness comes with a shamrock embossed in the foam and the staff posts a countdown to St. Patty’s Day and the annual parade, whose security is overseen by Burnett.
"Molly’s is the best," he agreed. "Come in here on Saturdays and you’re bound to bump into people from Philly."
Chip Burnett finished his beer. His memories of life in the Northeast and a valued career as a Philly cop will always be with him, but his future is in Jim Thorpe.
"I just turned the page," he said. "It’s just another chapter. I’m very happy." ••
Reporter Diane Prokop can be reached at 215-354-3036 or dprokop@phillynews.com