After more than 30 years of serving communities both big and small, Sedona Police Department Officer Jackie McQuaid decided it was time to hang up her uniform for good and take time to focus on someone else — herself.
McQuaid officially retired from SPD on July 30, after 23 years with the department, and was greeted by colleagues and friends with an emotional walk-out ceremony at the Sedona Red Rock High School.
“It was amazing,” McQuaid said after the ceremony. “I walked from being a sworn officer into my new role as a civilian. My fellow officers saluted as I walked past and my daughter, Jeralyn, brought me to tears with her words. It was surreal.”
While some dream of being a police officer from a young age or followed in a parent’s footsteps, that wasn’t the case for McQuaid. It was strictly financial. While attending college in New York, she found herself low on funds, like many students, and was faced with the possibility she may not have been able to pay for her next semester. But one day while driving home she heard an ad on the radio recruiting people for the New York Police Department cadet program. If a cadet was approved, the ad said, the program would pay for his or her college.
Not having many other options, she signed up.
Back in 1987, McQuaid was paid $10 an hour and was assigned to the 102nd Precinct as part of its community policing. She trained at the police academy on the weekends and would go to class and serve as a cadet on weekdays.
“It was a way to help people and because of the community policing program, we walked the beat,” she said. “We’d talk to the store owners and community members but we’d also help take the elderly food shopping. I learned early on how to provide service in a different way.”
After graduating from the academy, McQuaid was assigned to a precinct in the South Bronx and quickly realized she made the right choice in becoming a police officer.
“I loved it,” she said. “You didn’t even have to give me a paycheck. I couldn’t believe I got paid to do what I did.”
But working for the country’s largest police department in the early 1990s — and being a female officer — wasn’t the easiest, she said.
“We had to be rough and tough like the guys,” McQuaid said. “You couldn’t be wimpy. I’m a small woman [standing around 5 feet tall] so I had to take on the persona of someone who was 6 feet tall. When I put that uniform on, I become that person.”
She served with the NYPD for seven years, until 1997. And while she loved visiting the Sedona area and felt it would be a nice place to retire, she had no desire at first to come work here because of her love for the NYPD. While visiting, her then-fiance encouraged her to fill out an interest card to become a Sedona police officer.
Despite filling out the interest card, McQuaid admits she still had little interest in moving out west. But over that next year in NYC she responded to a trio of gruesome homicides and realized that wasn’t a place she wished to raise a family. Around that time was when then-SPD Chief Bob Irish offered McQuaid a job and she accepted. After completing a physical test and several written ones, she joined the SPD.
“It was a huge difference and quite a cultural change when I got here,” McQuaid said. “They tried to sell me on the number of calls they had. I’m an adrenaline junkie. I like to always be going — boredom is a killer for me. Their calls for service, however, were things like ‘javelina at large,’ ‘dogs barking’ and ‘garbage cans knocked over.’”
She said the first time she went out on a call regarding a javelina, she didn’t want to admit to anyone that she had no idea what one was. But upon arrival she quickly realized it was a “pig with tusks.”
As her career progressed in Sedona, McQuaid said she wished to go from being reactive when calls came in to changing gears and being proactive. She did so by becoming the public school resource officer, where she got to work with the kids with the goal of steering them in the right direction.
“I was able to get in front of a problem and try to help people before it became a reactive problem,” she said of her six total years in that position. “I went into the classrooms and taught the kids about good choices and how the decisions they make now can impact their future.”
During her time working at the schools, McQuaid found another passion — working with the Special Olympics program. She helped raise funds for the program and will continue to work as a volunteer in retirement.
McQuaid said she will miss working with the students and school administrators on a day-to-day basis, as well as her fellow officers. Those feelings are mutual.
“When I joined Sedona PD last year, I quickly learned that Officer McQuaid was tenacious in her role as the School Resource Officer and Special Olympics liaison,” Chief Charles Husted said. “She represented the department and served our community well in working closely with area youth, individuals with special needs and their families. Officer McQuaid will be missed.”
Lt. Stephanie Foley and Lt. Lucas Wilcoxson agreed.
“She has a willingness to help others and demonstrated that throughout her career,” Foley said. “She has dedicated a lot of her personal time to Special Olympics. Jackie was more than just an officer, she’s a good human. She cares about everyone and wasn’t afraid to show that compassion. That doesn’t means she’s soft or weak; she can handle herself on the road and in the toughest of situations. Jackie, thank you for your many years of service to law enforcement and Sedona PD.”
“She was very involved with the youth and educating the community about crime prevention,” said Wilcoxson, who joined SPD the same time as McQuaid. “This was her passion and she was loved by the community and this department. She will be missed, but will always be remembered. I wish her luck in her future endeavors.”
McQuaid made the decision to retire about two months ago. With COVID-19 shutting down the schools, she was no longer needed on campus and was put back on patrol. She then evaluated everything in her life and decided it was time.
“For so long, between work and being a mom, I’ve never had much time for me,” she said. “I’m going to travel the country and visit family I haven’t seen in many years and reconnect. When I get back I plan to volunteer, which is something I love to do. I’ve been very fortunate in my life and it’s time to give back. But for the next year I’m going to make it about Jackie.”
