SOUTHWICK – As a child, Cherrie Seibert Benoit knew her father carried a gun and had a dangerous job.

Her father, Leonard “Lenny” Seibert, was a law enforcement officer in Southwick for 30 years – first as a special or reserve officer, from 1958 to 1965, and then as one of the town’s elected constables for 22 years, from 1966 to 1988.

She and her younger sister, Lynne Cowles, both Southwick residents, recently talked about their father, sharing their memories of his days as a police officer. The third and youngest daughter, who lives out of state, was unavailable for the interview.

Similarly, Roberta Morehouse Haracz and Linda Morehouse Starkey, 73, shared their recollections of their grandfather, Joseph “Joe” Morehouse. He was another dedicated law officer who served Southwick and was one of the town’s primary police officers in the early part of the 20th century. His law enforcement career spanned nearly 40 years, from 1925 to 1963.

Southwick is remembering police officers of its past this week, National Police Week. Though Morehouse and Seibert didn’t die in the line of duty – Morehouse died in 1965 at age 67, while Seibert died in 2019 at the age of 94 – their relatives said both made personal sacrifices to protect and serve their town.

Seibert Benoit, 71, and Cowles, 69, recalled that they often feared their father was in danger and might not come home to his family.

“There was this overriding fear – which affected us in regard to our dad being a policeman,” recalled Seibert Benoit. “All we knew as kids was that he had a gun – and he could be in danger.”

She remembers one night in the early 1960s when her father had to go on duty.

“I felt he was going to get shot. There was something going on. When he came home, he said bullets had been fired. He drove his own car when on duty – and one bullet struck his windshield. That was very scary.”

The incident occurred when Seibert was one of the town’s special police officers, appointed each year by the Board of Selectmen. This was before the town had a permanent Police Department and relied on the special officers, the constables, and the Massachusetts State Police to maintain law and order.
Cowles remembers one summer when her dad sacrificed a week of his vacation from his full-time job to sit in a boat, dragging the Congamond Lakes for a teenager who was presumed drowned.

“That must have been very emotional for him, but it was just one little window of the things he did as a police officer. It was one of the few things from his police work that he shared with us.”

She also has memories of her dad that are happier.

“When I think of my dad as a Southwick police officer, I vividly picture him in his dress blues, with his hat and his white gloves, when he would march in the Fireman’s Parade every year. I remember his shield and I remember him as being very tall and looking very authoritative in his uniform.”

A Navy veteran, Seibert grew up in Connecticut. He didn’t finish high school so he could work on the family farm in Simsbury. He later moved to Southwick and then built his own house on South Longyard Road.

He worked full-time for Wolfe Dairy and Kellogg Brothers Concrete, both in Southwick, as well as for Kaman Aerospace in Bloomfield, CT, but he still found time to serve the town as a police officer and as a constable.

His daughters recalled his common sense and his ability to quickly learn how to deal with and adapt to almost any situation.

“When a neighbor’s car caught on fire, he rushed over with a fire extinguisher. Dad was a helper and a rescuer – he just had a strong sense of being a protector. Not just as a husband and as a father, but also as a police officer. It’s what made him a good policeman,” said Seibert Benoit.

Seibert’s daughters consider him their hero for his police work and for keeping them safe.

“He had a quiet sprit, but a very strong character. He was loyal and he was tough when he needed to be. But dad had a clear moral sense of what was right and what was wrong,” said Seibert Benoit.

Cowles added that her father enjoyed the camaraderie of police work. As a special officer, Seibert joined the Southwick Police Association and served in the offices of treasurer, vice president, and president.

Morehouse, like Seibert, brought an inner sense of duty to his police work. Morehouse was a self-employed carpenter and builder. He moved from East Granby, CT, to Southwick in 1917, and built his house on South Longyard Road the following year.

First elected as a constable in 1925, Morehouse spent nearly four decades serving the town as a law enforcement officer. He was one of two constables who in 1953 began doing double duty as both a constable and one of several special police officers. He’s also responsible for establishing the Southwick Police Association.

Well-known and respected by area police departments, Morehouse often assisted the State Police with cases in Southwick, including the investigation of two murders. The first occurred in 1938, when a woman killed her father with an axe. The second took place a few years later, when a man killed his business partner with a shotgun.

Before his retirement in 1963, he was the town’s first police chief, serving in an acting capacity for the last four years of his police career. In honor of being the town’s first police chief, his portrait hangs prominently at the Southwick police station, as does a plaque that honors the town’s police officers who have died following their retirement.

Morehouse Haracz, 75, who lives in Westfield, has many fond memories of “Uncle Joe,” as he was known by many people in town.

“The first time I saw his calming personality was back in the ’50s when some neighborhood boys set a brush pile on fire next to our driveway on Halloween,” she said. “Grandpa Joe had a way with words. That day, I understood his words of wisdom. The boys were schooled that day on safety, not scolded.”

She and her sister were always aware of the uniform and what it stood for – because of their grandfather’s police work as well as the fact that their father, Chester Morehouse, was a volunteer firefighter in Southwick for many years.

“I’m very proud of what Grandpa Joe did to help people in town – and he always did what he could to keep peace,” said Morehouse Haracz.

Growing up in Southwick, they lived with their parents in the upstairs of their grandparents’ house.

“We were always pretty close. Grandpa was always busy doing police work – it was his life,” recalled Morehouse Starkey, 73, who lives in West Springfield.

She remembers coming home from school when Morehouse was home on a break: “We would sit in the kitchen and talk about his day. The sad times were birthdays and holidays when he and my father were called away to take care of a fire or a crime.”

His youngest granddaughter also remembers that their grandfather always “loved people” and his town.

“If a crime wasn’t too bad, he would give you a lesson on behavior and take you home,” Morehouse Haracz said. “He gained the respect of the town’s youth and adults. Grandpa was always serious about keeping the town quiet and safe.”

Southwick Police Chief Robert Landis said the week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.

“It further provides the opportunity to reflect upon our responsibilities as chiefs to ensure the safety of officers and our duty to ensure that the sacrifices they make are recognized and appreciated by the citizens and communities they serve,” said Landis.

President John F. Kennedy in 1962 proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day, and the calendar week in which it falls as National Police Week.