In Memory: MVPD Officer And World War II Vet Henry 'Ed' Henderson

Photos courtesy of MVPD Historian D. Johnson.

From the Mountain View Police Department blog:

Retired Mountain View Police Officer Henry “Ed” Henderson died peacefully in his sleep on December 29, 2014. At 96 years-old, Officer Henderson was Mountain View Police Department’s (MVPD) oldest retiree.

He officially retired in 1976 and holds the distinction of being the first officer in MVPD history to put in enough time to officially retire from the department.

Officer Henderson began his career with the MVPD in the 1940’s before joining the U.S. Army where he served in the Pacific theater during World War II. He rejoined the MVPD in January of 1951 and served a distinguished career before retiring on December 31, 1978.

Officer Henderson spent the last several years of his career in Warrants since he knew everyone in town, and everyone knew him.

He walked the downtown foot beat for many years in the days before radios, which meant keeping an eye on the special light hanging over Castro and Villa, which would light-up when police officers needed to phone the station for a call.

Stories about Officer Henderson’s career bring about a sense of pride, appreciation and highlight the true definition of what “community-policing” is all about. Officer Henderson’s accomplishments made him revered by the people he served and even the suspects he arrested.

Officer Henderson is survived by his wife of 63 years, Barbara (Bobbie) Henderson, his son Rick, daughter Kelly Schroeder, son-in-law Randy Schroeder, and granddaughter Loryn Schroeder.

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