Honoring a top volunteer COP
“For completing 6,408 hours of volunteer service, I had received a very nice certificate from the Rancho Mirage Citizens on Patrol Services. And when I received the Senior Inspiration Award, it was like icing on the cake,” said Jack Schleicher.
Each year, the County of Riverside and the Coachella Valley’s nine cities select a senior 70 years of age and older who has been actively engaged in the community through volunteerism.
“It’s a way of honoring our community’s unsung heroes,” said Riverside County Supervisor John J. Benoit, speaking at the 22nd annual Senior Inspiration Award luncheon held at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa in Palm Desert. More than 500 people attended the event established by former Supervisor Corky Larson in 1992.
Schleicher’s amazing record of volunteer work over the past 12 years certainly qualified him for the prestigious award. Besides an impressive gold medallion inscribed with his name, Schleicher received certificates of recognition from the County of Riverside; the state Assembly and Senate; and a Certificate of Congressional Recognition signed by Rep. Raul Ruiz, M.D.
Patrolling the neighborhood
At age 83, Schleicher, who holds the rank of lieutenant, still volunteers for two four-hour patrols a week with the Citizens on Patrol Services, or COPS.
“We help with traffic and parking control,” said Schleicher. “We also see that graffiti is quickly removed. We’re non-confrontational, but our presence often wards off trouble.
“I enjoy managing our volunteers and helping the city and its residents. I also enjoy being part of something very different from my former profession.”
Schleicher had worked as a clinical laboratory technologist. He earned a bachelor of science degree in medical technology from Loma Linda University. He taught medical technology in Glendale and served as laboratory manager for many years at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia.
Schleicher was born in Indianapolis, Ind.
“I think I have a little gasoline in my blood,” he said, “because I was born in the same hospital where a lot of the 500 drivers were treated.”
While in high school he met his future wife, Frances Beck. They were married after Schleicher finished a stint in the Army during the Korean War. After raising their family in Glendale they moved in 1997 into a home in Ivey Ranch in Thousand Palms.
“Ivey Ranch was originally a cattle ranch,” said Schleicher. “Jack Ivey hooked up with Lawrence Walk and turned the ranch into a country club of manufactured homes. If you look closely at the bottom of some of the pools, you’ll see musical notes.”
Ivey Ranch may have disposed of its cattle, but the markings of a ranch remain. Some of the street names are Stage Coach, Stage Line, Mexicali Rose and the street where Schleicher lives is Branding Iron.
Genealogy and travel
Besides COPS volunteering, Schleicher’s interests include genealogy. Tracing his family lineage to Europe, he has completed extensive research on 1,100 family names and has submitted his research to Ancestry.com
At retirement in 1993, the Schleichers drew up a bucket list and completed all 10 on the items. The last item was a first-class train trip from Los Angeles to Chicago on Amtrak.
Schleicher’s wife died April 24 after a brief battle with leukemia. They had been married 58 years. Two sons live in Minneapolis and a daughter lives in Long Beach. There are six grandchildren — and four bulldogs.
“The Senior Inspiration Award luncheon was the last event my wife attended,” said Schleicher. “She was in a wheelchair, but she was determined to be there. She was very proud that I had received such an honor. So the Senior Inspiration Award will always have an extra, very special meaning to me.”