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FAIRFIELD – The City of Fairfield lost more than its police chief last week. It lost a son, a father, a grandfather, a friend, a mentor, and a beloved member of the community.

David Allan Thomas of Libertyville passed away suddenly at the age of 55 on Tuesday, Jan. 13. He had been a member of the Fairfield Police Department for over a quarter century, joining the force in 1999. In 2014, he was promoted to police chief, after having previously held roles such as sergeant, K-9 handler, lieutenant and captain.

Colleagues remember Thomas as a caring man who loved serving those around him. Julie Kinsella served on the Fairfield Police Department with Thomas for almost his entire tenure, and said he was an honorable man who will be dearly missed.

“He was a fair and consistent leader who loved his job and loved the people he served,” Kinsella said. “If you needed help with anything, like you needed help moving, he would be there.”

Shannon Pester, who has worked as a 911 dispatcher since 2014 and has been supervisor of dispatch for the last decade, said the employees at the law center were warned never to accept a cup of coffee from Thomas, because it meant they were getting more responsibilities.

“You’re either going to get promoted or be handed a task,” Pester said through laughs.

Pester said Thomas was more than a supervisor to his officers and dispatchers in the way he mentored them and helped them through tough times.

“He was a boss to all of us, but he and Julie, for all the years that I worked for them, they were like parents to me,” Pester said.

Kinsella recalled that Thomas’s commitment to his job never overshadowed his devotion to his family.

“His True North, the thing that rejuvenated his body and his batteries, was his family, his kids and his grandkids,” she said.

Shortly after learning of Thomas’s passing, Fairfield Mayor Connie Boyer ordered all flags in the city to be flown at half-staff until sundown on Wednesday, Jan. 21. She swore in Lt. Joel Smith as interim police chief. Outside the Jefferson County Law Center, Thomas’s pick-up truck was parked next to the flagpole to serve as a memorial, where loved ones left flowers.

Boyer said the police chief was known at city hall for his light-hearted and self-deprecating humor. But he also had a serious side.

“What sticks out to me is how caring and protective he was, protective of council members, of staff, of children in school and the community,” she said.

Former Fairfield Mayor Ed Malloy was on the city council when Thomas was hired in 1999, and even served on the personnel committee that interviewed the applicants. Thomas had previously worked as an Advanced EMT for Davis County EMS, and had been a member of the Ottumwa Police Department for four years when he applied for the Fairfield job.

“Dave Thomas showed a lot of promise from the very beginning because of his friendly and professional demeanor, and his love for doing community policing,” Malloy said.

Malloy was elected Fairfield’s mayor in 2001, and appointed Thomas to his post as police chief in 2014.

“I had great confidence in appointing Dave because he knows and respects the chain of command, and I always felt that respect from him,” he said. “Dave took constructive criticism well, was a good friend, and appreciated his relationship with the rest of the staff.”

Jefferson County Sheriff Bart Richmond joined the Fairfield Police Department in 1992 before switching over to the county side of law enforcement in 1997, just a few years before Thomas arrived. Richmond said he and Thomas met to discuss the shared costs of maintaining the law center. He said he admired the chief’s willingness to step up when needed, such as in periods of short-staffing at the police department.

Kinsella retired from the force about a year and a half ago, and for about the last 10 years, both she and Thomas had to take time out of their normal jobs to work patrol because of short-staffing. Kinsella was the city’s police chief before Thomas, and remained on the force after his appointment to serve as an investigator and later lieutenant. When Thomas became police chief, Kinsella told him he would need to find his own leadership style.

“Our personalities were a lot different,” she said. “I was more direct. Give me a task, let’s do it, let’s knock it out. But Dave, he could talk. He liked to talk because he liked interacting with people. We did share a philosophy, though, because for Dave, it was never about what was good for him and putting himself on a pedestal. Instead, it was about what was good for dispatch, good for city departments and good for the community overall. He was selfless.”