Westbrook’s Police Department lost an institution this week, as Sgt. Mike Sanphy patrolled his last shift Monday.
With 40 years of patrolling the city’s streets behind him, Sanphy is retiring Friday as the longest serving Westbrook police officer.
But more than just the experience and institutional knowledge that comes with spending that kind of time in any place, Sanphy is a familiar and friendly presence to many of the people that live and work in Westbrook.
In some ways, he was a throwback to the days when police would patrol the streets of small towns on foot, stopping in to visit with store owners and clerks. Yet, police like Sanphy are a modern necessity in a time when officers in departments that are often stretched thin spend much of their time in their cruisers or at the station. Many of us interact with them only as we are getting a speeding ticket or trying to talk our way out of a parking citation.
Sanphy isn’t the only Westbrook officer with regular interaction with the public, but he was well-known to many in this city, and the emphasis he placed on knowing the public he served should be an example of how important relationships between the public and police can be in small communities. Talking to Sanphy was a reminder these men and women in uniforms are no different from the rest of us. That kind of familiarity leads to the mutual respect that’s necessary for the public and police to work together.
Sanphy wasn’t just a great ambassador for the department, however. He is a local historian who has been watching from his cruiser as buildings and people have come and gone. An active member of the Westbrook Historical Society, Sanphy has been a weekly contributor to the American Journal for years, providing the pictures for the regular feature that appears on page 2, “Westbrook Then and Now.” It’s been a popular feature with older readers, who remember when the city looked as it did in the historical photos, and younger readers, who often have no idea what used to be in some of the locations featured.
While Sanphy draws on his large collection of photos to put the feature together each week, it wouldn’t be possible without his memory. He often remembers not just what was in a certain location, but also who was there, what they did and what year the business burned down in a fire. As someone who has spent his career and much of his life getting to know the history and people of Westbrook, he is an invaluable resource. One good thing about his retirement from the police department is that he may now be able to devote more time to his hobby – chronicling the city’s history.
As we continue to look forward to the brief history lessons Sanphy delivers each week, the Westbrook Police Department will have a hard time replacing his long memory and congenial personality.
Brendan Moran, editor
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