Getting ready to ring in a new year: it's a time many show gratitude to the people who surround them. A pair of police officers were recently thanked for something very few would be grateful for: a night behind bars.
It was a typical day on the beat for Portland police officers Benjamin Savage and David Moore.
"This is stuff we do every single day every night. Sometimes it doesn't seem like we make an impact," said Portland Police Officer David Moore.
Passersby will often stop to say a thing or two to the officers. Sometimes it's positive. Other times, it's the opposite.
On one December day, however — a day they won't soon forget — a man named Steven flagged them down.
"He came up to us and was like, 'do you have a second?' We said 'yeah' and he started to tell us a story that involved us," said Portland Police Officer Benjamin Savage.
They say Steven thanked them for saving his life. He told them he was arrested in April 2014 after operating under the influence.
It was also the day he left alcohol in the rearview mirror, and turned his life around for the better.
"It definitely made our day better," said Officer Savage.
Officers Savage and Moore weren't the officers who arrested him, but they are the officers who contribute to the Portland Police Department's social media. They were so touched by his story, they paused for a picture and followed up with a post.
"I didn't even get his last name,” said Savage. I don't want to pry too much into your private life but do you mind if we feature your story and he was all about it."
It now has over a thousand likes on a Facebook.
“It's not often that we get thanked by someone who we have arrested,” they wrote.
"To see someone like that who was down on their luck at some point and now he's getting a thousand plus people supporting him, it's awesome for us to see," Savage said.