A Cop Offers Thanks, Memories : Law enforcement: About 600 admirers bid farewell to former Valley LAPD commander Mark Kroeker. He recalls poignant moments of his tenure.

Speaking before 600 people who gathered to honor him Monday, Deputy Los Angeles Police Chief Mark A. Kroeker shared four images from his 2 1/2-year tenure as the San Fernando Valley’s top cop.

The first was from his arrival in March, 1991, a week after Rodney King was beaten by police officers in the northeast Valley. Kroeker recalled visiting a church to meet with African American ministers.

“I had no agenda, I had no notes and I said, ‘I’m here, I’m sorry, let’s go forward,’ ” he said.

The next memory was of shopping with his wife and running into the father of a boy who was slain in a sandwich shop. “With tears in both of our eyes as we faced each other in the Price Club, he said how grateful he was that our officers had solved that crime,” Kroeker said.

He then told those assembled, who had come to wish him well in his new post as head of the LAPD’s South Los Angeles operations, about a helicopter trip that he took one Saturday. From the air, he said, he proudly watched the cleanup efforts of 5,000 green dots--the color of the T-shirts worn by members of Sparkle, an anti-graffiti program that he started with local residents.

Finally, he shared a personal epiphany. He was driving home in the early-morning hours after a long day of breakfast, lunch and dinner meetings, listening to classical music on the radio and the voices of his own officers on the police scanner.

“How could a guy be more blessed, more privileged and have this occasion?” Kroeker recalled thinking. “I know that for this day, my life was well spent and the time was well invested.”

Kroeker, the son of Mennonite missionaries who was raised in Europe and Africa, made a reputation among police ranks and in the community as an involved and caring cop.

He created an innovative community-policing project in which 30 officers from each of the five patrol areas would concentrate on getting to know residents and merchants, organizing more neighborhood watch groups and serving as community liaisons.

Kroeker held news conferences to alert the public about violent and high-profile crimes. He solicited community feedback on the quality of police service and started a cable TV show to involve residents in fighting crime by encouraging them to phone in tips.

Kroeker was replaced in the Valley by Deputy Chief Martin Pomeroy, 47, a 24-year veteran and former administrator in the LAPD’s Employee Relations Division.

On Monday, Kroeker was honored by participants in several of his pet projects during the breakfast salute at Sportsmen’s Lodge. Members of Sparkle, the Jeopardy program, which assists at-risk youth, and the community-policing program touted his contributions to their programs and by extension, to the entire Valley.

“Even though it’s going to be a real loss to the Valley, it’s a true gain to the residents of South-Central Los Angeles,” said Officer Stephany Payne, a resident of the Crenshaw district.

While he spoke of regrets--he said two officers and about 400 citizens were killed during his tenure--Kroeker wanted to leave the Valley with a request. Acknowledging that he might say it too often, he left the stage with a trademark expressions: “Hug a cop.”

“Every horrible crime that has happened in the Valley, I have felt a little piece of me collapse,” he said after the speeches. “There are these tremendous ups and downs that come with the territory.”