Sergeant Hooper was a 22-year veteran of the Department of Public Safety and was one of the founding members of the department as it's role transitioned from a security department to a modern police agency.
Dedication
| The Western New England College Department of Public Safety has dedicated this website to the memory of Sergeant Richard Hooper, who lost his courageous nine-month battle with cancer on July 31, 2005.
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Dedicated to his family and friends, Sergeant Hooper was committed to his work and the entire community of Western New England College. Over the 22 years of service, he touched the lives of thousands of people at Western New England College. Sadly, his presence, his humor, and his morale will be notably absent on the College Campus in the years that follow. Sergeant Hooper leaves behind a wife, two daughters and two grandchildren, to whom we reach out with our thoughts and prayers. Thank you for all the memories, Hoop... you were a good friend. End of watch: July 31, 2005 |
Memorial
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To commemorate the life of Sergeant Richard Hooper, Western New England College and the Department of Public Safety established a scholarship fund. The scholarship was awarded to a local criminal justice student in the Fall 2006 semester. Sergeant Hooper's badge has been retired from service and is honorably displayed in the lobby of the Department of Public Safety. No other member of the Western New England College Police Department will ever wear that badge. On Monday, July 31, 2006 an oak tree, a living memorial to the life of Sergeant Richard Hooper, was dedicated on the south lawn of the police station. A bronze plaque resides on a stone at the base of the tree and was unveiled by Chief Gary Barnes and the family of Sergeant Hooper.
Images from the July 31, 2006 memorial ceremony:
"It was a year ago that we last gathered together on the sad occasion of the funeral service for Sergeant Richard Hooper. This afternoon, I join you all on belalf of Western New England College and the family of Sergeant Richard Hooper, not to mourn his death; but to celebrate his life.
I again wish to express our deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Sergeant Richard Hooper. Our thoughts and prayers are still with you all as we honor the memory of his life at this ceremony today.
Sergeant Richard Hooper only had one goal to achieve throughout the course of his 22 years of service at Western New England College; and that was to work hard to provide a safe and secure environment for the people of this community. For this, I wish to thank the family of Sergeant Richard Hooper for allowing your dear beloved father and husband, to do this important job in providing security for our families. I can assure you that what Sergeant Richard Hooper has done in the short time he had spent on this Earth, will bear fruit as we continue to make Western New England College a safe and secure community for all.
To the officers of the Department of Public Safety that stand with me here today: I know you will dearly miss one of your colleagues; but take heart, and be comforted by the fact that your comrade will always be remembered.
Today, we dedicate this oak tree with a plaque, in honor of the life of Sergeant Richard Hooper and his dedication to Western New England College. A symbol of strength, protection, endurance and renewal of life, may this oak tree watch over us in the years to come, as Sergeant Richard Hooper had watched over this campus."
- Speech given by Chief Gary Barnes; July 21, 2006.
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