Riverside City History
People Who Have Made A Difference: Gary Hohimer

In a city of pioneers," Gary Hohimer was right at home. While many Riverside leaders were literally inventing basics such as a city budget or parks, Hohimer was on the front line in public safety. A native of the small central Missouri community of Triplett, Hohimer recalled that as a youngster he admired the shiny car and starched uniform of a Highway Patrolman. "I always wanted to be in law enforcement," he said. "That always stayed with me." Hohimer came to Riverside and in 1959 graduated from Park Hill High School. In 1963, he was working at the old Riverside automobile racetrack when he met Vern Davis. Davis was both a security guard at the racetrack and served as Riverside City Marshall. "I told him that I'd always wanted to be in law enforcement," Hohimer recalled. "He said, 'I may have a job for you.'"

Hohimer soon found himself one of Riverside's three full-time officers, a job that soon taught him important police skills. Working alone without backup on the midnight shift, he was often the only law enforcement officer when 30,000 people attended races or when crowds became rowdy in one of the many taverns, which then lined Riverside's main streets. "I learned to use my head instead of my back or my mouth," he laughs now. "Most of the people you met weren't bad if you handled them right. But it could be exciting." He now laughs about some of the events that at the time taxed his abilities.

He was on duty on a busy weekend at the racetrack when weather forced a rainout. The track manager informed the crowd that they would be given rain checks, but some in the audience didn't accept that option. They voiced their disagreement by surrounding the ticket office and setting it on fire, with the manager, Hohimer and others inside. While that event ended well enough, another fire ended tragically and brought about a major advance for the city.

The El Chaparral apartment complex was the scene of a disastrous fire. At that time, a nearby volunteer fire organization was paid to provide protection in Riverside, but the El Chaparral sustained substantial damage. "The fire response time was consistently up to 45 minutes," Hohimer recalled. "The apartment fire started in the laundry area and probably could have been contained. But it ended up taking out 12 units on three floors. We realized we had to have something better."

The city first tried to create its own volunteer fire department, but the difficulty in getting people to train was a problem. In 1973 Riverside formed its Department of Public Safety, a group that addressed police and fire protection with cross-trained officers. Hohimer became the first director. The new organization was a definite improvement, but was nothing like today's operations. At that time, manpower was still limited but resources were probably the biggest limitation. Reports were written by hand (in triplicate!). Once when "statistical analysis" was needed, a resident with ties to a large wholesale grocer borrowed some computer time. "Everyone worked very hard in those days," Hohimer now recalls. "It's nothing like the department we have now, but it was a good start. Everyone who was involved can be proud of their hard work."

NEXT»