COMMITTMENT TO SERVICE: Littleton Police Department Deputy Chief Jeff Patterson to Retire from Nearly 30 Years in Law Enforcement

LITTLETON — Littleton Police Deputy Chief Jeff Patterson grew up wanting to be a police officer and spent 27 years living his childhood dream of serving with commitment in a small community.

Deputy Chief Patterson will retire effective Tuesday, Sept. 1. A celebration of his career will be held that day from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at the police station. 

Despite growing up with dreams of being a police officer, Patterson first went to work as an EMT with Patriot Ambulance in Chelmsford after studying Criminal Justice at UMass Lowell. However, this was just the first step of his public safety career. 

He worked his way up to Operations Manager of Patriot Ambulance, while also working part-time as a Special Police Officer in Concord and as a call firefighter/EMT with the Littleton Fire Department. 

In 1999, Patterson was hired by Chief John Kelly to be a part-time reserve officer in Littleton, giving Patterson his first taste of real law enforcement beyond just directing traffic. 

“Once I did that, I knew I had to change careers,” Deputy Patterson said. “At the age of 35, I was offered a full-time job with LPD and went through the police academy.”

In 2002, Deputy Patterson joined the Littleton Police Department full-time and never looked back. He completed the three-month Administrative Officers Course at the Southern Police Institute and the FBI-LEEDA Leadership Trilogy. 

A resident of Littleton since 1997, Deputy Patterson raised two children here, and his passion for law enforcement and service took root in his family. 

Deputy Patterson’s daughter Nicole Patterson is a Southbridge Police Officer and has served in the U.S. Army Reserves for 12 years. His son Stephen Patterson has served with the U.S. Army for 16 active duty years. His brother-in-law Kevin Shea is a retired Belmont Police sergeant, and his nephews Michael Shea and Connor Shea work as officers in Quincy and Waltham. 

Deputy Patterson credited his wife Susan for supporting him throughout his career, and for helping to raise two children over 35 years of marriage. 

Having spent nearly three decades in law enforcement now and watching Littleton Police grow from a 12-person department to a 24-person department, Deputy Patterson said his career has lived up to what he thought it would be as a child. 

“I think it was what I thought it would be. I thought it would be different every day, and somewhere I could contribute to a community. I never wanted to work for a huge department. I wanted to work for a town,” Deputy Patterson said. “And it is a job where things are different every day. You don’t know what you’re going to deal with next, and you get to meet all kinds of people — some great and some not — and just use your skills to help people.”

Deputy Patterson said training has improved and law enforcement has become more professional as the national spotlight has fallen upon the profession over the years, but he said one thing that hasn’t changed in Littleton is the police department’s commitment to and involvement with the community. 

The most important change he can remember stemmed from the most painful incident — the tragic loss of an officer. That incident led retired Chief Matt Pinard to focus the Littleton Police Department on officer wellness, and Deputy Patterson supported that effort wholeheartedly. 

“Put your family first,” said Deputy Patterson, when asked what his advice is to younger law enforcement officers. “That’s something that I taught my kids, and now my son has it tattooed on his arm. It’s important for officers to be committed to the job, but your family always has to come first.”

“I want to recognize the commitment, dedication, and care that Deputy Patterson provided to this community as a firefighter, detective, supervisor and administrator for decades,” said Chief Landry. “Jeff made significant contributions to the foundation that the Littleton Police Department is built upon today, and we are grateful for his service to this department and community.”