Serving and protecting: Ray Wilson retires from NP

Throughout his law enforcement career, Ray Wilson has done everything from delivering a baby to teaching elementary school students about internet safety.

Mr.+Ray+Wilson+retires+after+four+decades+of+service%3B+after+serving+for+the+Hatfield+Township+Police+Department+and+SWAT+team%2C+he+took+on+the+role+as+a+Security+Guard+and+then+the++Safe+Schools+Coordinator+at+NPSD.

Hank Hoffman

Mr. Ray Wilson retires after four decades of service; after serving for the Hatfield Township Police Department and SWAT team, he took on the role as a Security Guard and then the Safe Schools Coordinator at NPSD.

TOWAMENCIN- Five days a week, 180 days a year, a small force of men and women stand watch over the students and faculty of North Penn High School. The security guards of North Penn patrol the cafeteria and hallways, dutifully fulfilling their obligation to ensure the safety of all who enter the building.

This integral unit loses a member as February begins. Mr. Ray Wilson, the Safe Schools Coordinator for North Penn School District, is retiring after serving the people of southeastern Pennsylvania as a Police Officer and later a security guard for over four decades.

Ray Wilson first realized his desire to serve and protect others when he was a student at Souderton High School. Wilson’s father owned a radio store on Main Street in Lansdale, right on the corner of a busy intersection.  Lansdale Police Officers were constantly outside of the store directing traffic.  Wilson became close with the cops, and he went on numerous ride-a-longs and spent a great deal of time with the Officers.  In college, Wilson became an intern for the Lansdale Police Department over the summer, and there he worked dispatch and tackled the never-ending paperwork that comes with policing.

On one of the first nights he worked as a dispatcher an armed robbery occurred at a bar. Lansdale cops pursued the suspect far out of town, eventually chasing him toward awaiting Pennsylvania State Troopers.

Working dispatch, in one ear Wilson stayed in touch with the State Police and in the other ear he kept a phone tuned to the county radio. All the while Wilson maintained communications with Lansdale Police Officers.  Before he was apprehended, the suspect began throwing money out of the window of his vehicle.

“It was almost like a TV show,” Wilson remembered. The intern would receive a commendation for his actions that night.

Wilson’s summer as an intern with Lansdale PD solidified his desire to become a lawman. One of the Lansdale Police Officers he met during that time still remains Wilson’s best friend, and today Wilson is the Godfather of one of that officer’s daughters.

After high school, Wilson gained admission to the Montgomery County Community College, earning his Associate’s Degree in Police Science after two years. He then traveled to Connecticut, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice at the University of New Haven.  Setting his sights on law enforcement, Wilson applied for the Hatfield Township Police Department right after he graduated college in 1975.  After completing a written and oral test, he scored second out of a hundred applicants and soon found himself in a patrol car.  He would serve the people of Hatfield Township for thirty-one years in many capacities.

Wilson eventually became the Officer in Charge, meaning he assumed responsibility whenever the Sergeant was not available. He later spent fifteen years with the rank of Sergeant, and completed the last seven years of his police career as the Lieutenant in command of the patrol division.

I really loved going to work. I could have left after twenty-five years, but I stayed for thirty-one

— Mr. Ray Wilson

One of the many awards Wilson received during his career was earned by rescuing a man from a burning vehicle.

“I really loved going to work. I could have left after twenty-five years, but I stayed for thirty-one,” Wilson said about his time as a Police Officer.

Outside of Hatfield, Wilson joined the SWAT team, a unit where ten local police departments pooled their officers to respond to high-risk incidents in each community. A member for almost two decades, Wilson served as the second-in-command of the SWAT team for five years.  He was involved in several intense SWAT incidents where the team saved innocents from dangerous people.

After his thirty-one years in law enforcement, Wilson asserts that his proudest moment in uniform was when he assisted in delivering a baby. During a blinding snow storm, a 911 call came in reporting a young woman in labor.  Due to the foot of impenetrable snow, an ambulance would not be able to reach the caller’s apartment in time, so Wilson and another officer managed to walk to the apartment building where the call came from.  With his fellow officer waiting outside for the ambulance, Wilson found the anxious soon-to-be parents inside of the apartment.  With medical professionals bogged down in snow, Wilson stepped up and delivered a baby boy.

During a routine patrol eight years later, Wilson was approached by a woman he didn’t recognize. She identified herself as the mother he had met during that snow storm and introduced him to the child he had helped bring into the world.

“That was one of the best moments of my career,” Wilson reflected. “I was one of those guys who loved helping people.”

After retiring from Hatfield Township PD, Wilson saw a request from Penndale Middle School for a security officer. Having enjoyed doing community work with HTPD, Wilson applied for the job.  At the middle school Wilson immersed himself in working with a variety of cultures of students and a great staff.  Though at times challenging, Wilson found his three years as a security guard at Penndale a rewarding experience.

People encouraged Wilson to apply for the new position of Safe Schools Coordinator in 2009, and he received the position that he has held until his retirement.  Wilson saw to upgrading many of North Penn’s security policies, along with introducing emergency drills to each school in order to teach students what to do in a perilous situation.  He personally performed safety talks to staff, along with sub orientations where he informed substitute teachers on safety protocols in the district.  Understanding the dangers of modern technology, Wilson enjoyed doing internet safety presentations for 4th, 5th, and 6th graders.

“I was in a different role here,” Wilson explained. “Instead of being a cop and having to come into the school and take care of things, I was now on the inside trying to teach people here in the schools how to be safe.”

In addition to his hands on approach to keeping students and faculty secure, Wilson acted as North Penn’s liaison for the six police departments that serve the communities where North Penn schools are located. In this role, he kept communication flowing daily between the district and the Police.  A former cop, Wilson found his job was easier due to knowing all six Police Chiefs and a number of the Officers in each department.

When asked what he will miss most about North Penn, Wilson, without hesitation, responded that he would miss the security staff most.

“I’ve developed a great bond with them; it’s a really great group of guys and girls. Sometimes they have to deal with some of the worst stuff here at school, but they do a good job.  There are a lot of retired Police Officers, and we have a good time here,” explained Wilson.

Wilson noted the efficiency in which North Penn security guards react to incidents in the school and in cooperating with local Police. He also praised the North Penn School Board for improvements in keeping the school safe, such as the security systems around the school and at the entry ways.

Be safe out there. Be very vigilant. It’s a very rewarding career. It was tough leaving that job, and it’s going to be tough leaving this job, too

— Mr. Ray Wilson

Now that he is retiring after over 40 years of public service, Ray Wilson is off to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he can look forward to long days of fishing, crabbing, boating, and spending time with his grandchildren.

To those interested in a career in law enforcement, Wilson stated that despite the risks always associated with the job, the lifestyle of a Police Officer can be very rewarding.

“Be safe out there. Be very vigilant.  It’s a very rewarding career.  It was tough leaving that job, and it’s going to be tough leaving this job, too,” stated Wilson.