Vernon police chief reluctantly faces retirement

VERNON — It was 1975 when Roy Wherry graduated from the Essex County Police Academy and joined the fledgling 11-member Vernon Township Police Department.

At the end of a hard day, it was not uncommon for officers to recite the mantra “20-and-out.” The phrase referred to the hope that union contracts would shorten their time on the job and that they could retire after 20 years of service.

On Thursday, after nearly 40 years have passed, it became clear that Wherry was not likely one of those officers when he promptly stated that his law enforcement career encompassed, “38 years, 10 months,” in response to a question about how long he had served the residents of Vernon.

Wherry shared that his occupation as a police officer can be a strain on family life, noting shift work can be difficult.

“Like everybody else, there’s been days when I didn’t feel like going to work. There’s been good days and bad days, but there’s never been a day that I wanted to be something other than a cop.”

Wherry raised his family here, which includes twin sons and two daughters, all of whom were born in Saint Anthony’s Hospital in Warwick, N.Y., Asked about his intention to stay in Vernon after his retirement, he quickly responded, “Absolutely.”

When the department was formed under the direction of its first Police Chief Angelo Esposito, he hired 10 patrolmen: George Dolak, Bob Helmrich, Ken Itjen, Ken Johnson, John “Kaz” Kazmierczak, Jack King, Steve O’Conor, John Volosin, Roy Wherry, and Wally Wootton.

Wherry was the last of the original 10 still working on the Vernon police force, with Johnson retiring as chief in 2000. Before becoming chief, Wherry worked as a patrolman, sergeant, lieutenant, and then captain. His pride in his job is eclipsed by his high regard for those who have worked for him.

“What I am proud of is all the people who make up our department … they’re the ones that get everything done,” Wherry said.

About personal pride in the job he added, “There are a lot of little things that all add up, that you can help somebody out.”

Noting that the town’s numerous departments each have a clear function with the police department being another option, he said, “People come in here, because they don’t know where else to go, and if you can help them out, then it’s good.”

Of his accomplishments on the job he is most proud of exposing, and then the arrest and subsequent conviction of former township manager Don Teolis, who used the township’s assets to fund personal trips with a female employee.

"It was a lot of work just trying to get people to look at that," Wherry said. "After the prosecutor's office got involved, it all came together."

Looking back at the good old days, Wherry noted that radio reception was a big problem at the time. Now, however, the department’s fleet includes better radios, and cars with computers and video. According to Wherry, an ALPR system (Automatic License Plate Readers) is coming next.

“The technology is just mind boggling compared to what it used to be,” he said.

Wherry remembered that traffic jams due to cows was not uncommon. When he was late bringing his children to Saint Stephen’s School in nearby Warwick, he used to travel via then unpaved Barrett Road, rather than Route 94, because the cows from the VanDokkenburg Farm would often block the highway.

“We chased a lot of cows in the old days, now our cow calls have been replaced with bear calls,” Wherry said.

Over the years, Wherry recalled some horrific events such as the bus accident and tanker accidents at the bottom of Sisco Hill (Route 515) and homicides and suicides in the condos. As far as their severity he responded, “They’re all serious to the people involved in them.”

As far as funny or odd events that happened, he recalled the new Interwest cabriolet lift and a drunk who called the department to complain that the lift was actually a UFO flying above the slopes.

As far as management is concerned and reflecting on a period of time when the township had “something like seven managers in a year-and-a-half,” Wherry said he feels that since Vernon had the change of government, things have never been better for the department. He said although he’s been expected to keep costs down, he said “whatever I need, what I have to ship, that’s up to me and that’s fine. There’s never been anything that I needed that I didn’t get.”

Chief Wherry and his sense of humor will be missed, but he is leaving his lifelong career as a happy man.

“I feel I’ve been truly blessed being in a job I enjoy,” he said.