Toms River Police Honor Retiring School Resource Officer, EMT

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Toms River Police Department honored two retiring members at a recent Toms River Township Council meeting.

Cpl. Thomas Herbst, who has worked for Toms River for 21 years, and Community Service Officer Robert Marion of the Toms River EMS squad, both were honored for their service to the township.

Herbst, a lifelong resident of Ocean County, grew up in Beachwood and moved to Toms River in 1998.

Herbst graduated from Toms River High School South in 1991 and earned a criminal justice degree from Ocean County College. In 1995, he graduated from the police academy and began his law enforcement career with the Beachwood Police Department, where he worked until 2001, serving on the traffic safety unit. He was PBA Officer of the Year in in Beachwood in 2000.

Herbst joined the Toms River Police Department in 2001 and was a field training officer for several years and was a member of the Emergency Services Unit from 2006 until 2021. He also served on the department’s Bike Unit, Marine Unit, and was a Police Camp instructor for several years, and achieving the rank of corporal in 2021.

Herbst served as the school resource officer at Toms River High School East for the last five years. Throughout his career, he received multiple lifesaving, merit awards and accommodations for service to the community.

Marion, who moved to Toms River in 1982, joined the Dover-Brick Beach First Aid Squad in 1986 and became a state-certified emergency medical technician that year.

In 2002 he became one of the original eight community service officers hired to staff the Toms River EMS when the program began. He was instrumental in developing the reputation of high standards and professionalism the program has now.

During his 20 years as a CSO, Marion has responded to about 16,000 EMS calls, officials said. In addition to his work as a CSO, Marion continued to volunteer for the Dover-Brick Beach First Aid until 2022, a total of 34 years of volunteer service to the community.