PROSPERITY — A familiar face has been named the new Prosperity Police Chief, Wesley Palmore.
Palmore officially took over as chief on Monday.
A native of Newberry and Newberry High School graduate, Palmore is no stranger to Newberry County. Palmore was raised in the Helena section of Newberry where he said his interest in being a police officer first began.
“I became interested in becoming a police officer by observing officers patrolling the streets, interacting with the youth in my neighborhood and just seeing some of the officers just interacting with the community,” Palmore said.
He added that his interest in law enforcement peaked after he went to college — Palmore graduated from Benedict College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice (Cum Laude) and received his Master’s Degree in Human Resource Management from Webster University.
“I’ve always had a knack for wanting to serve and protect — I joined the National Guard in high school at just 17 years of age and that began my knack for service,” he said.
Palmore would also read editions of The Newberry Observer — which would soon lead him to the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office.
“A lot of my interest was peaked just by looking at The Newberry Observer, my mom got the paper and a lot of times I would see stuff in The Newberry Observer — I wanted to serve my community so I joined the Newberry County Sheriff’s Department — which gave me the opportunity to serve the people in my community,” he said.
As he patrolled in his neighborhood, working to keep the citizens safe, Palmore felt a sense of pride as a young man.
“Pride for my community, pride that I was one of the first few officers to serve from my neighborhood, and shortly after other officers started serving, that was a lot of pride,” Palmore said.
Palmore’s time with the NCSO also gave him the opportunity to be a School Resource Officer working with youth in the community.
“After patrolling, I did that for like 22 years up until taking this position and I was able to connect positively with the youth of Newberry County through the Newberry County School District — and through programs like Law Enforcement Explorer Post and through coaching. Working with the schools, I was able to connect with the youth which was definitely a passion of mine,” he said.
While he will miss being an SRO and supervisor with the Sheriff’s Department, Palmore is looking forward to taking on his new role.
“The opportunity to be the Police Chief for the Town of Prosperity is definitely a dream come true for me. I look forward to serving the citizens of the Town of Prosperity, looking forward to making a good department even better. We’re definitely going to focus on community policing, connecting with the citizens in a positive manner and keeping the town as safe as possible,” Palmore said.
One of Palmore’s goals in his new position is to bring stability to the department which includes a 24 hour department to answer the calls of the citizens. According to Palmore, the schools, churches, businesses and community as a whole deserve quick, friendly service from the officers.
Although he has a new title, Palmore said having already established relationships he “doesn’t have to start from scratch” as a new face in town — he is prepared to bring his leadership experience to the department.
“A lot of stuff in background like funding, grants, budgets and responding to calls of citizens. It’s a challenge, but I’m up for it and I’m happy to be given this opportunity after serving 27 years in law enforcement and 27 years in military. I think my training and leadership training has prepared me for this position and I look forward to of course doing it,” Palmore said.
In addition to his law enforcement experience, Palmore has years of military experience — he was deployed to Afghanistan in 2007 as an embedded tactical trainer where he trained the Afghan Army and Police. Palmore was also awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his action in combat by the United States Army.
“Training is very important because you get in situations and you always revert to your training, also planning short and long term planning. The military played a very big part in my preparation for this job — administrative experience, supervisor experience, leadership experience as well as experience I’ve received from the Newberry County Sheriff’s Department,” he said.
Palmore’s military education includes: Infantry Basic Training; Non-Commission Officer Development Course; Palmetto Military Academy Officer Candidate School; Infantry Officer Basic Course; Embedded Tactical Training Course; and Captain Commander Course.
Palmore has also received numerous awards which include: Bronze Star Medal; Meritorious Service Medal; Army Commendation Medal (Second Award); Army Achievement Medal (Second Award); Army Superior Unit Award; Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal (Fifth Award); Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Campaign Star; National Defense Medal; War of Terrorism Service Medal; NCO Professional Development Ribbon; Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Training Ribbon (Second Award); Army Forces Reserve Medal with “M” Device and 20 years Silver Hour Glass; Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal; Kosovo Campaign Medal with Bronze Service Star; NATO Medal (Third Award); and Combat Infantryman Badge.
While Palmore is only closing out his first week as chief, he said the department is currently preparing for Prosperity’s second annual National Night Out on August 6 from 5-8 p.m. on the softball field.
Palmore has a wife Cynthia and two children Nahdia and Nolan.