Richard W. Glasgow

In July 2000, Richard W. Glasgow, 47, was named commanding officer of the Motor Lifeboat Station under the Golden Gate Bridge. It is the Coast Guard’s busiest search-and-rescue unit on the West Coast. But the mission has changed since Sept. 11. The bridge is considered a potential next target for terrorists.

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“We’re always going to be focused on search and rescue. But a lot of our focus now is on defending the bridge. The crew takes it to heart. We call ourselves the Guardians of the Gate. This is our house. Nobody comes in our house and messes it up.

We do a lot of patrols to the bridge. The other day we were out. Somebody started yelling. We thought maybe somebody had fallen off. It was a couple of ironworkers under the bridge yelling, ‘Go, Coast Guard!’ That’s something new that didn’t happen before 9/11. That made you feel real good.”

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As told to Scott Gold