Chief Gabriel Rodriguez and all of us here at the Camden County Police Department are saddened to learn of the passing of a true trailblazer here in the City of Camden – retired Police Corporal Rhoda Thomas.
A Camden native who made the city her home throughout her career, Thomas graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1976 and followed that by going to college to earn her degree in law enforcement then serving as a substitute teacher in Camden’s public schools. In 1985, she realized her dream and became the first African American woman, and only the second woman in the agency’s history, to join the Camden Police Department.
Thomas graduated from the police academy in April of 1986 and immediately hit the streets, quickly establishing herself as a no-nonsense officer who commanded respect and who was truly committed to fighting crime and making her hometown a better place. She would go on to serve 25 exemplary years as an officer in the city in a variety of roles including foot patrol, vice squad, bike patrol and in the security detail for Mayor Dana Redd.
She retired from the force in the spring of 2011 but continued to serve the City of Camden in a new capacity for several more years, as a trusted aide to Mayor Redd and the director of the city’s Office of Prevention and Re-entry. She worked to help newly released inmates reintegrate into society while also working with at-risk youths to help them stay on the right path.
Corporal Thomas was both a pioneer and an inspiration to countless young women in the City of Camden, showing them that their dreams about becoming a police officer could someday become a reality. She was a dedicated public servant, a respected friend to her fellow officers and a beloved neighbor to the residents she served and protected.
The City of Camden has lost someone very special who will not soon be forgotten, and we extend our deepest condolences to her family and friends.
