Riverhead resident Evelyn Hobson-Womack, a U.S. Army Reserve veteran and retired Riverhead Town Police detective who broke barriers in local law enforcement, was honored June 23 as Suffolk County’s First Legislative District Women Veterans Appreciation Honoree.
Suffolk County Legislator Greg Doroski recognized Hobson-Womack during the legislature’s general meeting in Hauppauge. Each of Suffolk County’s 18 legislators selected a woman veteran for the annual recognition, which honors women who have served in the armed forces and continued to contribute to their communities.
Hobson-Womack, a lifelong Riverhead resident and 1983 graduate of Riverhead High School, enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve after graduation. She said she was following the example of her sister Connie, her brother Brian and her father, Carnell Hobson Sr., who had also served.
She served six years in the Army Reserve and attained the rank of specialist.
Looking back on her military service, law enforcement career and community work, Hobson-Womack said the county recognition means a great deal to her.
“I accept this award not as a finish line, but as a reminder to keep going,” Hobson-Womack said. “To continue serving with integrity, compassion and purpose.”
She said she is proud to be a veteran, proud of the work she has done and “even more proud of the work that still lies ahead.”
Hobson-Womack joined the Riverhead Town Police Department in 1993, becoming the first African American woman to serve as a Riverhead police officer. She later became the first woman and first African American promoted to detective in the department.
She retired from the department in 2021 after 28 years of service.
Hobson-Womack said she understood the significance of being first, even if she did not set out to make history.
“It was like you couldn’t slip up,” she said. “There was no room for errors.”
But she said she was accepted by the officers she worked with, many of whom she had known since school in Riverhead.
“They already knew my character,” she said. “Not to say I was -easily accepted, but I was accepted.”
She said she was never confronted by fellow officers over her race or gender and did not feel those things held her back. Still, she said it is disappointing that no other African American woman has followed her into the department since her retirement.
Over her 28-year law enforcement career, Hobson-Womack became known not only for her police work, but for her work with young people. She helped establish Go Girls, a program for fifth- and sixth-grade girls that followed them through graduation.
The program was created to encourage and empower young women, she said. Hobson-Womack said she remains in touch with many of the young women who participated.
“I see them, you know, they always bring it up: ‘Remember Go Girls?’” she said. “So yes, it is definitely a great feeling.”
Some of the former participants now work in education, health care and local services, she said, including at a charter school, hospital, nursing home and the Riverhead Central School District bus company.
Doroski said Hobson-Womack’s career reflects leadership, perseverance and commitment to community.
“Evelyn Hobson-Womack did more than make history. She created opportunities and set an example that continues to influence others today,” Doroski said. “Her career reflects leadership, perseverance, and a commitment to helping people and strengthening the community.”
Hobson-Womack also ran for Riverhead Town Council in 2021, after retiring from the police department. Although she was not elected, she said at the time that her mission with the police department was over, but her journey in Riverhead was not.
Asked who helped shape her along the way, Hobson-Womack named the late Dr. Betsy Crump, her parents and her aunt Annie Jackson, a mother of 10.
Doroski said it was a privilege to recognize Hobson-Womack as this year’s First District honoree.
“Her impact can be measured not only in milestones achieved, but in the people she mentored and the example she continues to set,” he said.
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