The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
A LAST RIDE, A FOND FAREWELL
One of Norristown’s favorite officers retires after 25 years
NORRISTOWN » On Saturday, Jan. 28, the police department bid farewell to one of Norristown’s finest.
Lt. Robert Greenaway took his ‘last ride in’ to the station after serving 25 years on the force. Over the course of those two-and-a-half decades, he became one of the most recognizable, well-liked and respected officers in the municipality.
Greenaway grew up in Clearfield County, Pa., some 40-odd miles northwest of state college, and aside from having the common boyhood dream of becoming a professional athlete — in his case, a baseball player — he always wanted to be a cop.
After making the move to his current neck of the woods in 1990, he took the police entrance exam, passed it, and paid his way for enrollment
“So many people go through this world wondering if they ever made a difference. Norristown cops don’t have that problem. God bless all of you thank you so much.” _Lt. Robert Greenaway
in the police academy, but ironically, he was hired by the Norristown Police Department before classes began and the NPD set up his training and reimbursed him.
Greenaway began his career as a patrol officer and steadily moved his way up the ranks, becoming a platoon leader, a field training officer and eventually head of community relations and a patrol commander.
His expertise as a technical marksman served him well as one of the original members of the NPD’s SWAT team and a firearms instructor. And he was a familiar face at countless community events and police outreach initiatives, including National Night Out and Coffee With a Cop.
“I want to say you’ve been a great example of what it takes to be a police officer,” said Norristown Police Chief Mark Talbot Sr. to Greenaway in remarks at his last ride in. “I think all of us here can really be inspired by the example you set. I think in policing, you don’t know whether your last day is going to choose you or if you’re going to choose your last day, you don’t know.
“We’re all better off for the time that we’ve spent with you. We greatly appreciate it, and I greatly appreciate it. Thank you so much,” Talbot added with a handshake, a hug and a salute.
“So many people go through this world wondering if they ever made a difference,” said Greenaway, paraphrasing Ronald Reagan’s sentiments toward the Marine Corps. “Norristown cops don’t have that problem. God bless all of you thank you so much.”
Greenaway expressed appreciation for all the men and women of the Norristown Police Department, neighboring police departments and law enforcement agencies, municipal workers and administrators, and the Montgomery County DA’s office for making his job “so wonderful.”
Greenaway gave special acknowledgement to former Norristown Police Chief and Montgomery County Sheriff Russell Bono for instilling a culture where “work ethic” was paramount and for making the most of what he had to work with.
He also praised Talbot for adding structure to that culture by installing systems of leadership that have guided the department through what he called, “probably the most difficult time in policing,” over the last several years.
Through it all, the most important part to Greenaway was being able to make the kind of difference he spoke about in his message to fellow officers.
“Community relations,” he said. “That part of policing is congruent with my
personal values so it was just something that I always did...Talking to people in the neighborhoods, trying to problem solve. The longterm solution is always better than a temporary measure like a citation or arrest. That’s always kind of been part of who I was as a police officer and I‘ve always valued that approach.”
Greenaway pointed to two particular incidents that stood out to him. Both had to do with young men on whom he made an impression.
One young man was about 10 years old when his mother brought him to the police station to talk to an officer. The boy had been acting out. He was distraught over the loss of his father and apoplectic about having to attend reform school.
Greenaway spoke to him about how life could be unfair and how it would be up to him to move forward and better his circumstances. He also told the boy to look at his enrollment in the school as an opportunity rather than a punishment.
Several years later, Greenaway said, that boy’s mother sought him out at the police station to tell him how well her son — now a star football player — was doing, and how she thought his heart-to-heart with him may have been the turning point.
In another instance, Greenaway encountered a young man at a youth law enforcement forum at the PAL center and was impressed with the youngster’s inquisitive nature and eagerness to learn.
The young man, equally impressed by Greenaway, took note of the of the officer’s gold cross pin. Seeing the boy’s interest, Greenaway told the boy that if he did well, he would give him the pin at the end of the forum.
When Greenaway gave the young man the pin as promised, the boy seemed astonished, but Greenaway wanted him to know that “people would hold their word.”
Since then Greenaway has seen the teen at “National Night Out” and other events around town. They always greeted each other warmly, and Greenaway found out that he was graduating from high school and entering the Navy. When the young man’s birthday rolled around, Greenaway sent him a “Happy Birthday” message on Facebook.
The young man replied and told Greenaway he still has the pin and wears it on his Navy uniform every day.
“To me that’s what it’s all about,” said Greenaway. “I’m one person. And if I can verify that I touched one person in 25 years, well then, I at least broke even. That’s the way I look at it.”
Greenaway said he is retiring because he feel likes the time is right. His sons are grown — his eldest is an officer in the Marine Corps and his younger son is on his way to college after recently completing an enlistment with the Coast Guard — and he would like to spend time travelling and working with his wife — they plan to do some investigative consulting work.
He also wants to volunteer, continuing the work he has done with Access Services “to help divert people who are mentally ill away from the justice system if they don’t need to be there.” And he plans to continue firearms instruction at the police academy when called on.
“I had my time in,” Greenaway said. “I felt like there’s so many times I’ll see police will leave and they don’t have a lot of time left to enjoy some of the people that were supportive of them when they were giving so much of their time to somebody else.
“That’s a job (policing) where you can overstay your welcome. It can beat you up. You don’t want to leave when you’re too worn out to give something to another career,” he said, adding that he is looking forward to his “third phase” — after growing up to become a cop, and protecting and serving for a generation.
Though he has seen his share of tragedy and tribulation on Norristown’s streets, Greenaway said he thinks “the sky is the limit” for the police department as long as the community stays invested and involved.
“I think it’s a great place to work, especially if you want to be challenged,” he said. “I think it’s always been, and it’s only gotten better as the years have gone by. I felt really fortunate that I got to be part of something like that.”