Ed DeGaris, who spent 45 years in service for his hometown as a police officer, city representative and volunteer, died Wednesday night at his residence.
He was 68.
“I just love the people. I love my community,” DeGaris said in 2018 when he was named Citizen of the Year by the Butler County Community Resource Council.
DeGaris served as the city’s mayor twice during his time on the city council that included four three-year terms ending in April 2021.
“He left a big imprint on our community after his retirement from being a police officer,” said Matt Winters, Poplar Bluff city manager. “He was involved in so many things.”
DeGaris volunteered for Buff Up The Bluff every year, taking his trailer around town in the days leading up to the event and then helping at the drop-off site, often with family, including a grandson, by his side.
In 2013, when he was mayor, DeGaris repainted the large multicolored backdrop behind the tower of the Rodgers Theatre. He got local businesses to donate the paint and did the work himself, along with his son and a few others.
“I went to a lot of movies there and I got tired of seeing it faded,” DeGaris said at the time.
“If you wanted something done, you just mention it to Ed and if it was in his power, he would certainly get it done,” said Susan McVey, who served on the city council with DeGaris.
“If he couldn’t do it with his own hands, he would find the resources to get someone to help or donate or partner with. He just never said no. He just was the kind of guy that can make it happen.”
DeGaris built a structure to house the Downtown Farmer’s Market and was among the volunteers that built Grace Christian Fellowship church in 1996.
“He believed in God and faith, his church and his family, and our city,” said Jim Gerber, who worked with DeGaris. “He just can’t be replaced.”
Born Jan. 26, 1954, DeGaris graduated from Poplar Bluff High School in 1972. He was a member of the band, playing trombone.
On March 7, 1975, he married Donna Lisa Jones, who survives.
Also surviving are three children, Christopher DeGaris, Elizabeth Kilhanfer and Ross DeGaris; and 10 grandchildren.
“Ed loved his family,” Gerber said. “He thought the world of those grandkids. Talked about them all the time.”
DeGaris started with the Poplar Bluff Police Department as a dispatcher before joining the patrol.
“He was basically the epitome of what a policeman should be,” said Gerber, who served under DeGaris when he was a supervisor. “You could ask him any question. You may not like the answer but he’d give you a truthful answer.”
DeGaris epitomized community policing, said Chuck Stratton, who worked with DeGaris and is director of public safety at Three Rivers College.
“It was not so much about the law as he was concerned about the person,” Stratton said. “… He was interested in the well being of the citizen, even after the call. That’s what always stood out to me.”
DeGaris took kids that had gotten into trouble to visit a prison hoping the experience might help save them from ending up there in the future.
He taught CPR classes along with his sister, Anette Harris, and was presented an award from the Red Cross for his work.
DeGaris earned numerous awards and citations for his work, including Officer of the Year.
“It was an honor to know him and work with him,” said Danny Whiteley, chief of the Poplar Bluff Police Department. “It’s certainly a loss to the community.”
DeGaris retired from the police department after 33 years as “one of our premier officers,” Whiteley said.
Whiteley first met DeGaris playing softball in the 1970s and Gerber also remembers playing against DeGaris in the ’80s.
Every year, DeGaris took each of his grandkids, one by one, shopping for school supplies or Christmas gifts.
When he retired from the police department, DeGaris went sky diving.
McVey encouraged him to run for city council, which he did, serving Ward 2.
“I had limited knowledge on several things that would come up, but I knew who to call to obtain information that was valuable,” DeGaris said in 2021, when his final term on the city council ended.
“I received numerous calls in support of my stance on issues. Prayed a lot about what was the right thing to do.
“Supporting the veterans on behalf of the city was extremely gratifying. Supporting our employees is essential to the city — they get all the criticism but no glory. I tried to let the citizens that I called back with results know it was our employees that did it.”
In 2018, Poplar Bluff became the second city in Missouri to be named a Veteran Friendly Community from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
“He was very instrumental in getting Poplar Bluff recognized,” Winters said. “He was always a great guy to talk with and always very eager to help, no matter what the project was.”
DeGaris served on the Butler County Community Resource Council board of directors for a decade.
“Anything we needed him to do he was always on board to assist,” said Rebeca Pacheco, executive director of the CRC. “We are very saddened by new of his passing.”
Among his many volunteer roles, DeGaris once served as emcee of the local spelling bee.
“I love the Community Resource Council because everything they do is to help others,” DeGaris said in 2018 when he was named its Citizen of the Year. “That’s going to do absolutely nothing but help our community, and that’s what we should all be trying to do.”
An obituary will appear in the Saturday edition as services are still pending.