Longtime Enfield Police Officer Phil Thomas Passes Away

ENFIELD, CT — Longtime police officer Phil Thomas, who devoted more than three decades to serving the Enfield community before retiring several months ago, passed away Friday.

Thomas was a dedicated officer who was never shy about putting in additional hours on road jobs and extra duty assignments. He was also community-minded, serving on various committees including the TRIAD Committee, a national program which connects senior citizens with local first responders to raise safety awareness.

Retired Police Chief Carl Sferrazza said, "It was a privilege to work with Phil all these years. He was devoted to the department and to the people in the community. Prayers go out to his wife and his children."

"Phil Thomas was an outstanding police officer and I was privileged to work alongside him as an officer and supervise him as a sergeant and lieutenant," retired Lt. Pat Droney said. "He was one of the nicest guys and, more than being a great cop, he was an outstanding family man. This is just a gut punch; I am stunned. I’m heartbroken for Phil’s wife Rachel and his two sons, Brian and Scott. This is a tremendous loss for the Enfield Police Department family. To work for the town for as long as he did and to only enjoy retirement for a few months; well it just sucks."

Former officer John Ludemann recalled, "I had the privilege of working with Officer Phil Thomas for many shifts during my 22+ years with the Enfield Police Department. His calming professional demeanor was always well taken by the public he served and protected. Phil was always there to help and provide his sound advise. He had a true dedication to his work and was very well respected by everyone in the department. He was a coworker, friend and brother in arms and will be severely missed."

On its Facebook page, the Enfield Police Department Honor Guard posted a memorial to Thomas as its cover photo.

Various tributes to Thomas have already been posted on Facebook:

• "I’ve known Phil for almost 25 years and he is a dear friend. The absolute nicest guy on the planet. This is devastating news." - Darren Barsalou
• "l worked with Phil on some events in town when l was on the fire department. What a great guy, he was a credit to the uniform. I have a funny story about Phil; we were doing this event at the Scitico Plaza once and l had this hot rod yellow Jeep, it was all jacked up with big tires. l told him to take it out for a spin; when he came back he was hooked. He went and bought one." - Arnold Grimaldi
• "Good man. I was hired with him, attended the academy with him, worked with him all those years. God bless Phil and his family." - George Marusak