Riverhead salutes retiring officer at the end of his 30-year career

Riverhead Police gave a retiring brother a truly intergenerational sendoff Wednesday afternoon outside department headquarters. From former Chief Joseph Grattan, who started as a patrolman in 1963 to the fresh-faced young recruits who recently graduated from the police academy, the crowd assembled to honor Officer Michael Mowdy spanned three generations.

The traditional walk-out honoring a cop on his last day of service, drew a huge crowd for Mowdy, a man his peers praise as steady, dependable, diligent and always ready with a smile. Those were the also attributes hailed by Grattan, who hired Mowdy in 1996, and many others in attendance, including Mowdy’s wife Christina.

His fellow officers in dress uniform stood at attention on both sides of the stairway to the entrance of headquarters, and saluted Mowdy as he descended the steps just before 3 p.m., with his wife at his side and their two children, Katie and Michael following. 

At the end of the poignant walk away from the building, he was handed a portable police radio to use to sign off for the last time. Mowdy pressed the button and heard the familiar crackle. He dentified himself by name and shield number: “P.O. Mowdy-168.” After receiving the dispatcher’s acknowledgement, he replied with the police code for “out of service, his voice cracking: “One final time. 10-28.”

The dispatcher responded with expressions of appreciation and respect for his 30 years of service, for his sense of humor and his reliability. She wished him a long, healthy and happy retirement.

After a round of applause, Mowdy walked alone to the top of the steps, then slowly made his way down again, this time shaking hands and exchanging bear hugs with fellow officers — both current and retired— each step of the way.

“Officer Mowdy is a great person, as well as a great officer for this town and the public,” Riverhead Police Chief Ed Frost said. “He’s very compassionate. He always handles assignments with compassion and diligence, and I want to thank him for his 30 years of service to this community.”

“Mike is a homegrown local his whole life, who served Riverhead Town very well, retired sergeant Tom Lessard said.

“He was always one of those guys who would come in last-minute, whenever you needed him,” said retired lieutenant Dave Lessard. “He did whatever he had to do, and did a great job for the Town of Riverhead. We’re very proud of him.”  

Christina Mowdy said her greatest joy as the wife of a cop was that he came home safe after every shift. “That was my happiest moment,” she said. There were some times that were “not so good,” she acknowledged. One that stands out for her as “hard” was during 2020 when police officers everywhere faced backlash for the deaths of Black civilians in various cities around the country.

“A lot of people weren’t supporting the police, and it affected my kids and my family a lot, “ Christina Mowdy said. “But other than that, Mike had a really great career. He was well-liked by his coworkers and his community, and he always brings a smile and laughter to everything that he does. 

It’s really been more joyous than not,” she said.”He’s like that when he’s at work. He’s like that when he’s at home. And when he came home from work, he took off the uniform, and that was it. That was the end of the day for him, he didn’t bring it home,” she said.

Mowdy recalls a career built around the camaraderie he shared with fellow officer. He established deep friendships, he said. “I’m so thankful and humble that I did get to know them.”

Some parts of the job were tough, whether it was responding to emergencies where people were injured or killed, or the time he spent as a volunteer at Ground Zero in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, picking through the rubble of the Twin Towers, hoping to find survivors.

“It’s a memory forever seared in my mind,” Mowdy said. “It’s something I will never forget.”

The job was hard in other respects. too, like having to miss family events and holidays, birthdays and other occasions — or even just Sunday night dinner with his family. Not being able to make it to all of his kids’ school events and sports games was very difficult, he said. 

Whatever the drawbacks along the way, he said, the positives far outweighed them overall. Mowdy has no regrets, he said. “It was an honor and a privilege to serve.

RiverheadLOCAL photos by Denise Civiletti