Commitment to Coralville at heart of chief’s longevity

CORALVILLE - Barry Bedford's stay in Coralville was never meant to be a long one.

Hired as a reserve officer in 1973 and a full-time officer in 1974, he said he figured he'd stay on for a few years before moving on to a bigger police department elsewhere.

'I never intended to stay long,” he said.

That brief stint in Coralville turned into a 42-year career, including the last 28 years as chief. Not bad for a guy who never even meant to go into law enforcement.

'I really see it as God's sovereignty,” Bedford said. 'I do believe God has a plan for our lives and sometimes he has to impose it. It's worked out well and I'm not going to argue with how it went.”

Soon, Bedford's time as chief will come to an end. He turned 66 in October and Iowa law dictates that anyone over 65 cannot be a fully sworn police officer. While his commitment to the job hasn't changed, Bedford said he couldn't ask someone to do a something he couldn't do.

So earlier this year, he announced his retirement. Bedford said he plans to stay on for a few more weeks as Coralville continues its search for his replacement.

What has been the key to his longevity in law enforcement - and as chief? He and those who have worked closely with him over the years say it's Bedford's commitment to Coralville, both as a police chief and community member.

'The community and his staff have loved him as much as he has loved the community and his employees,” said Coralville Mayor John Lundell, who has known Bedford since the 1980s. 'It's really been a love-love relationship.”

When Bedford arrived on the University of Iowa campus in 1968, he was a pre-med student from West Des Moines. But his time on campus was during a contentious era both locally and nationally. The Kent State shootings in Ohio happened in 1970. In Iowa City, Bedford said he and other students dodged bottles and rocks trying to protect Iowa Book and Supply during an anti-Vietnam war riot.

Those experiences, along with criminology classes and a fraternity brother who wanted to get into law enforcement, steered Bedford toward the police department. After joining the Coralville reserves in June 1973, he was hired by the UI Department of Public Safety that year. He was hired full-time by Coralville in November 1974 after passing on a job offer in Boise, Idaho.

'I got on here and kind of never left,” he said.

Coralville in the 1970s was a far cry from the community of today. There was no Coral Ridge Mall, no Iowa River Landing and the population in 1970 was just over 6,000.

When he joined the department, Bedford was one of five full-time officers. These days, the police department has 34 full-time officers and the city has a population of more than 20,000.

Bedford made detective in 1977 and served as acting chief for a few months in 1981. In 1988, the chief position opened and Bedford applied.

'I got cut,” he recalled. 'So I went on vacation.”

But while on vacation, Bedford called back home and learned the City Council had passed on the other candidates and was looking for him.

He came back early to interview for the chief position. Sitting in on the interview were members of the City Council, mayor and a young man Bedford had never seen.

That young man was Coralville's new city administrator, Kelly Hayworth. The afternoon after the interview, Hayworth called Bedford and offered him the chief job, kicking off a partnership that would last until present day.

'We've been together for a long time,” Hayworth said. 'Barry is just one of those people you can trust to do the right thing. We have not had that many conversations on a weekly basis because I knew he was doing what was right by the police department. If there was something important I needed to know, I could trust he'd get hold of me.”

For Bedford, who started his tenure as chief on Sept. 1, 1988, he viewed his mission as a simple one.

'I always believed it was my job to make (Hayworth) and the council look good,” he said. 'If I'm doing my job well, it'll make them look good. It's not about me. It's about the city.”

Hayworth has emphasized a culture of community involvement in the city, something Bedford embraced for himself and his department. Bedford is involved with his church, the Salvation Army and city events such as RAGBRAI events, 4thFest and FRYfest. He organized the kickoff to Substance Free Summer, a grill out event at Northwest Junior High. And, when the Iowa River surged out of its banks in 1993 and 2008, he was there filling sandbags.

'He's really embraced the community,” Hayworth said. 'He loves Coralville and his is involved in all kinds of things that really don't have anything to do with the police department.”

When Bedford thinks about his impact at the police department, it's the individual interactions when he's made a difference in someone's life that he believes have meant the most.

'I think a lot of the real successes are on a one-to-one basis,” he said.

In the coming weeks - and for just the second time in his Coralville career - Hayworth will hire a new police chief. It won't be easy, he said.

'It's going to be really tough,” he said. 'After 28 years, you kind of forget all the things somebody might not know. They won't know the community as well, obviously, as Chief Bedford did. It's going to be a very tough go to fill that position.

'The good thing and what I'm excited about is Chief Bedford can relax a little bit. He's going to be around the community and he's interested in continuing to help and volunteer. We're not losing him by any means, and that's a great thing.”

Bedford said he wants the next chief to 'be his own person,” so he's hesitant to offer much advice. That said, Bedford said he hopes the new chief continues to serve Coralville in the way he tried during his career.

'The priority has to be the city and citizens,” he said.

Not one to rest for long, Bedford said he's still figuring out what he'll do in retirement - maybe he'll bag groceries, he said, only half-jokingly. One thing he won't do is wonder what could have been had his life taken him in a different direction more than 40 years ago.

'I felt like it was a calling,” he said. 'I have truly loved almost every minute of it.”

l Comments: (319) 398-8238; lee.hermiston@thegazette.com.