THE LOSS
OF A FOUNDING FATHER
By Tommy
Tague Past President
Jerrard F. Young Lodge D.C. #1
FOP Lodge
D.C. #1 lost one of our Founding Fathers when Past President, Charles G.
"Tex" DeMoss passed on November 16, 2007. Tex was the fourth President of
D.C. Lodge #1 and was very instrumental in the organization of the Lodge.
Tex was a United States Capitol Police Sergeant who had retired from the
U.S. Army after serving in both Korea and Vietnam. Tex was highly
decorated while in the military and he rose to the rank of Master
Sergeant.
While Tex
was a member of the United States Capitol Police Department, he and
several other retired military men who were then serving in law
enforcement, recognized the need to improve the working conditions for
police officers in the D.C. area. Tex believed the best way to improve the
job was to organize the different police departments under the Grand Lodge
of the Fraternal Order of Police which had national recognition and a good
reputation.
For the
next six years Tex and the other officers promoted the FOP idea at
meetings and gatherings such as the American Legion Posts, the VFW, the
Knights of Columbus and the Elk Lodges. During picnics and sporting events
they would promote the idea of the FOP. New recruits were told about the
advantages of joining the FOP.
After the
FOP D.C. Lodge #1 was chartered under the Grand Lodge, members of the
Metropolitan Police Department did not trust the FOP because it was
started by members of another police agency. The union which represented
the MPD officers and sergeants circulated information that the FOP was a
white racist organization. Tex DeMoss and other members of the FOP worked
diligently to change this image. Finally in the late sixties and early
seventies, Tex and the other FOP members were rewarded for their tireless
hard work, when D.C. Lodge #1 more than doubled in size from less than two
hundred to nearly five hundred members. Tex was one of the reasons the
lodge changed its image.
On April
29, 1971, FOP Lodge D.C. #1 was renamed as the Jerrard F. Young Lodge D.C.
#1. Tex again worked tirelessly behind the scenes to name our Lodge in
honor of Metropolitan Police Officer Jerrard F. Young, who was killed in
the line of duty on April 21, 1971 while serving a bench warrant in the
3200 block of 14th Street NW.
Tex
continued volunteering for many years at FOP picnics, Christmas dances and
other social functions. Tex was the type of person who never asked for
praise or rewards. He was a thoughtful person who was liked by his peers.
Tex was a loyal FOP member who dedicated a lot of time and effort to help
improve the working conditions for all police officers in our great city.
In closing,
we can say Tex accomplished his dream and the dream of all the Founding
Fathers who have now gone. Tex will be missed but he will always live in
the hearts of those who knew him. |
