After a string of burglaries plagued a fire station while first responders were out fighting fires, elderly veteran Woody Williams put his foot down. He is going to personally protect that fire station, no matter what it takes.

Williams’ story caught on after someone took a picture of him standing defiantly in front the station in a plaid shirt and pants. The steely look in his eyes show that this veteran isn’t joking around, and the image was quickly shared across social media.

Williams decided to act after he heard that multiple fire stations in North Carolina had been robbed while firefighters were out on calls. He began to visit firevstation #7 whenever he heard sirens to “keep an eye on the place.”

Don’t mistake this vet for a feeble old man. In an interview with a local news station, Williams explained that he is more than prepared to chase away a would-be robber if the situation demands it.

“This is a 12-gauge cane,” Williams joked to WBTV. “I’ll do my darnedest to stop him. It’s not my job to arrest him or do anything like that, but I’ll get a big chunk of his ass. Y’all can beep that, if you want to. But I’m old military and I don’t mind taking him to task. If I have to wreck him out, I’ll take him out. He won’t get far.”

That criminals are targeting firefighters while they are too busy saving lived makes Williams feel let down. Thanks to his military background, Williams is a firm believer in giving back to the heroes who risk their lives to protect the community.

“We were trained to fight and die for our country and they don’t go away your whole life. So if you got something – duty calls. These guys are our brothers in need,” Williams said. “They’ll fight and die for us and I’ll fight and die for them. And if you think about it, that’s a good die. I don’t mind dying for a good cause.”