By Corporal Brian Schnell, Public Information Officer

It has often been said that “once a cop, always a cop”.  That simple sentence has a lot of meaning and significance.  Being a “cop” is so much more than putting on a uniform and serving and protecting the community.  Behind the badge and uniform there is a side that gets used to “being a cop”, and at the end of a career that is not always easy to let go of.  I am not referring to the physical rigors of police work, or ticket writing or arrest making, I am talking about the unity and camaraderie that exists in police work.  It is truly a benevolent brotherhood that doesn’t stop when one retires.  That fact is exemplified EVERY Memorial Day here in Sunny Isles Beach!

Retired Lieutenant Rick Feisthammel is a living testament to the aforementioned camaraderie and brotherhood.  For those unfamiliar with Lt. Feisthammel, I’ll tell you a little bit about him.  Lt. Feisthammel, after serving our country in the Vietnam War, spent a full career serving the local community as a police officer.  After retiring from the North Miami Police Department, he served his “best years” here with the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department.  He started here when the agency was born in 1998, and retired in 2006.  I had the distinct honor of emceeing the retirement luncheon for him.  Chief Maas and I knew that Lt. Feisthammel enjoyed a good laugh, so we made the retirement festivities more of a “Roast” than a farewell.  In front of a packed house at Tony Roma’s Restaurant we teased the Lieutenant and told him to forget the police radio codes and jargon and get used to such terms as “AARP” and “Medi-care part D”.  It was a humorous, well intended send off, and nobody laughed harder than Lt. Feisthammel!

The mood quickly changed when the Lieutenant took the microphone to deliver his final farewell.  Laughter switched to the obvious attempts to hide tears as Lt. Feisthammel praised his colleagues and subordinates, and went on to thank his wife Alicia for “putting up with (him)” all those years.  At the end of his speech he made a simple promise.  He said “I am not going anywhere, I’ll still be around.  You’ll still see me”.  We all assumed that those were words that were “just supposed to be said”, because they are the words everybody says at special events like graduations, job transfers, relocations, and yes, retirements.  I think we all thought we wouldn’t really see much of the Lieutenant anymore – but we were wrong!

Lt. Feisthammel was our gift, and he is still giving to this agency in a wonderful way.  He still stops by just to say hi, but what is truly amazing is this.  For the third straight Memorial Day, since his retirement, Lt. Feisthammel and his wife Alicia came to the police station for the sole purpose of preparing a barbeque lunch for those on duty!  It is the “All-American” style, Memorial Day barbeque, with hamburgers and hot dogs, which is well received by all those who have to work on the holiday and be away from their families.    He looks for nothing in return – the enjoyment of the troops is payment enough.

As he stood behind his grill, spatula in hand, I took a moment to inquire of the Lieutenant about retired life.  His reply was not quite what I expected. “It’s ok.  It takes some getting used to though.”  He went on to describe the “letting go” process like this: “You go from spending everyday knowing you have to accomplish something, now if you get something accomplished that’s great, but if it doesn’t get done, you can just do it tomorrow.”.  It sounds like the perfect scenario, but the Lieutenant insisted that “it may sound easy, but it’s a tough adjustment to make at first.”  He assured me the adjustment, while not easy, has been made and he is now truly enjoying retirement.

Rick Feishammel led by example, and he still does.  A wise person might study or mentor under the supervisor who goes before him, if they have respect, credibility, understanding and knowledge.  Rick Feisthammel certainly possessed these qualities and more, which allowed many to view his style of leadership as successful.  Even in retirement, he is still teaching many of us about “giving back” to others.  On behalf of all those who enjoy our Memorial Day because of you, a heartfelt “Thank You!”