Last month, 49-year-old Harry Wilson Jr., who once worked the front desk at a Holiday Inn in Fort Washington, pulled down the curtain on a 26-year career with the Secret Service, writes Mister Mann Frisby for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Most recently, Wilson has been on guard detail for President Obama, seamlessly blending into the background while working one of the most high-stress jobs in the world.

Wilson’s path to guarding the most highly visible man on the planet was not typical by any means. He found himself working at a Holiday Inn in Fort Washington, while he applied for jobs.

“I had gone on interviews but couldn’t find a job, and I found myself as the front-desk supervisor,” he said. “I knew I wouldn’t be doing that for the rest of my life, but I needed the income.”

During that time, he applied for a position with the Uniformed Division of the Secret Service which also works outside of the White House. After an 18-month interview and vetting process, he was hired in August 1990 as a federal law-enforcement officer, which did not include guarding the president directly.

“Most people when they heard Secret Service, they assumed I was this big-time special agent working around the president, but I started off as a uniformed officer,” said Wilson.

Prior to his transition to special agent in 1996, Wilson was warned by his superiors of the downsides to the gig, especially as it related to his personal life.

“Basically I lost all of my old friends because you miss homecomings, parties, weddings, and after a while, you drift away from old circles,” he said.

However, Wilson credits his college sweetheart Devonne for holding down the household, which includes three teenage girls, in the midst of his high-demand career that virtually has no days off.

“Turning in my badge after 26 years means I had to give up my diplomatic passport and I’m going to really miss not having to go through security screenings at airports,” he said. “And of course, the food on Air Force One is great.”

Click here to read more about Harry Wilson Jr. in the Philadelphia Inquirer.