http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/scn-sa-retire4jul08,0,147284.story?coll=stam-news-local-headlines
By Natasha Lee
Staff Writer
July 8, 2006
STAMFORD -- With more than 60 years of service between them, assistant chiefs John Geter and Richard Priolo said goodbye yesterday to the police department they've served and cherished.
The pair finished their last week packing up their offices and getting things in order for the officers who will replace them.
"When I walk out these doors, it'll be my last time as a police officer," Geter said. He has served as the head of the department's youth bureau for the last four years.
Geter, 62, admits he hasn't given much thought to future pursuits, but first on his agenda is several vacations and few rounds of golf. Geter lives in Norwalk with his wife, Carolyn, and has four children and three grandchildren.
"I'm looking forward to my first pension check," he said. The last item Priolo, 52, planned to take from his office was a framed drawing of Fenway Park -- home to his beloved Boston Red Sox.
"I tried to have something that reminded me it's not all about police work, to keep you grounded," said Priolo, who has headed the administration department for the last eight years.
Formal announcements regarding replacements for the positions have yet to be made, but Priolo said Capt. Tom Wuennemann and Lt. William Watrous have been named to take over several responsibilities under the administration departments. As with the tradition of closing the chapter on a long-running career, Priolo and Geter reflected on their experiences.
"I got to meet a lot of people, travel to places around the country. . . . Life itself is a very long path of different phases," Geter said.
In 1971, Geter followed his older brother, Ralph, to the Stamford Police Department, where his brother was already an officer. Geter, a Greenwich native, worked as a patrol officer for 10 years, with a brief stint as a fatal motor vehicle accidents investigator, before he moved to the narcotics division in 1981.
Geter's kindness and laid-back style is what many officers and residents were drawn to, said Capt. Richard Conklin, who worked alongside Geter in the narcotics squad.
When Conklin's father was killed in an accident while vacationing in Aruba, Geter rallied several officers to drive to pick up Conklin's three younger siblings who were attending out-of-state colleges and brought them home to New York, Conklin said.
"It's things like that you'll never forget," he said. "He was always a caring type of person. He really went that extra distance."
In 1996, he became the city's first school resource officer for Stamford High School and found a niche that would provide his most rewarding experiences. Not all of the high school students he encountered were impressed by the police presence on their campus. But Geter was persistent, reaching out to the youth, sometimes making early-morning house calls to wake tardy students from their beds.
"When I first started there was one kid, who couldn't stand me for years. Hated my guts. But later, at graduation, he gave me a big hug in his cap and gown on the field," he said. "I felt touched."
Geter jumped three officer ranks when he was promoted to assistant chief of the youth bureau in 2002 -- a first within the Stamford Police Department. "I proved something to myself and to my critics," he said. "That I could do the job."
Priolo's list of anecdotes range from rewarding memories of serving as a mentor to an unruly teen to the bizarre -- he was once called to a downtown apartment on a report of a dispute between a couple that ended with the girlfriend tossing a $1,000 replica of a Star Trek phaser out the window.
Priolo joined the department in 1977, after a brief stint as an officer with Central Connecticut State University. As a rookie officer, he remembers walking the city streets that would become virtually desolate by 7 p.m.
"When I first walked the midnight tour on foot patrol, our job was to keep the ladies of the evening from leaning on the parking meters," he said.
As a lieutenant, Priolo helped establish the department's police academy in 1988. He also served as the assistant chief of patrol, a midnight tour commander, director of information technology before he was promoted to assistant chief of administration.
As head of administration, Priolo oversaw 35 areas within the department from the bomb squad and marine division to federal funding and outdoor seating permits. Of all the positions he's held, being a patrol officer was his favorite, he said.
He'll miss the interaction with residents and fellow officers, and amusing community meetings he used to attend as a patrol officer.
Two years ago at a Waterside community meeting, residents there were complaining about an abandoned car problem. He couldn't help but laugh and some of the residents took it the wrong way, he said.
"I said, 'Excuse me for chuckling, but I remember this area when the big call was shots fired every night. I have to think to myself this is an improvement,' " he said
Capt. Susan Bretthauer who has worked with Priolo since 1998, said she'll miss his approachable manner.
"He just has a nice way about himself. You can always talk to him," she said. "He's always been my boss, when we're not working, he's a friend."
For now, Priolo said he is looking forward to a few leisurely months on the golf course and a little lake fishing. He also will become a grandfather. His first grandchild is expected in August. He lives in Fairfield with his wife, Joanne, and has two stepchildren.
He plans to pursue his interest in education and maybe some consulting work, Priolo said.
"It's like my world has opened up. There's things in the back of my head I always wanted to do," he said. "I just don't know what I want to do yet."
Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.