". . . the cop other cops aspired to be . . ."
Carlsbad police Sgt. Larry Moore was the cop other cops aspired to be -- a powerful man with the brawn to fight his way out of tough situations, but the brains to defuse them. He was tough, but thoughtful, his colleagues said. Even after he was diagnosed with brain cancer several months ago, Sgt. Moore insisted he break the news to his fellow officers.
"I saw him in the locker room that day," Carlsbad Police Lt. Bill Rowland said. "He said, `I just want to prove that you don't have to have half a brain to be a sergeant.' "
Sgt. Moore, who turned 55 in September, died Tuesday of complications from the cancer, Carlsbad Police Department spokeswoman Lynn Diamond said. Several of his fellow officers said he was among the city's most respected and experienced officers.
"When I started out in this job, Larry Moore was the guy every rookie cop wanted to be," said Rowland, who worked with Sgt. Moore for 17 years. "He was a pillar of strength. He could find the answer for anything."
A San Diego native, Sgt. Moore graduated from the Arts College of Design in Los Angeles with a bachelor's degree in 1970. After a short career as an artist, including a stint as an animator for Walt Disney Studios, he joined the Carlsbad Police Department in 1976. By 1980, Sgt. Moore had been promoted to senior officer and in 1985 was named the city's Officer of the Year. He said at the time that he liked the job because it satisfied his craving for physical activity.
"My friends who were artists asked why," Sgt. Moore, a former Navy frogman, said in the interview. "But there is a lot of sitting down in art. It's a very sedentary job. I decided I was going to look for a job that justifies running and working out."
As a charter member of the department's tactical response team and the architect of the department's defensive tactics program, Sgt. Moore was among the department's most seasoned veterans when he was promoted to sergeant in 1998. He helped train most of Carlsbad's rookie cops and was one of its most experienced hostage negotiators. Carlsbad Police Chief Jim Hawks said in a written statement that Sgt. Moore "was a role model for professional law enforcement and represented everything best about Carlsbad (Police Department)."
He is survived by his wife, Linda, also an employee of the police department. Diamond said Mrs. Moore has asked that memorial donations be made to cancer research.
Brian Hazle: (760) 476-8208; brian.hazle@uniontrib.com
Copyright SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY Dec 19, 2002
From the San Diego Union December 22, 2002
Known as Larry or “Lar” to all, Lawrence R. Moore succumbed to brain cancer on 12/17/02 after three months of fighting a good fight with the support of family, friends and co-workers. Born on 9/15/47, Larry was adopted a few months later by Randal and Alice Moore. It was obvious to his lucky parents that they had picked the cream of the crop! From the beginning he was a strong active child with many gifts unfolding as he developed. At a very early age he displayed his artistic ability and, over the years, he would develop into an award-winning artist, creating pieces in several media.
As a boy, Larry was encouraged by his parents to develop all his talents. A natural athlete, with the desire to be healthy, he learned a lot about fitness and good nutrition from his mother, a registered nurse. Throughout his life, he participated in sports, and water sports became one of his favorites. Loving the beauty and power of the ocean, he spent a lot of tie off the shores of Carlsbad.
Raised in San Diego, he graduated from Crawford High School in 1965 and, forty years later is still remembered by his many friends as a leader with a zest for life. Larry, like many young men in the mid-1960s, went for a time wondering what to do in such turbulent times. He attended Mesa Jr. College where he met the love of his life, Linda Pekarek, who would become his “gal pal” for over 30 years. While attending Mesa he was offered a football scholarship at U. C. Berkeley, which he turned down to take on the challenge of joining the U. S. Navy, becoming a member of the Underwater Demolition Team, now known as the Navy Seals. After serving his country in Vietnam and taking Linda as his wife, Larry got his bachelor’s degree in art, and entered the world of commercial art. After a short time working at a few jobs, including Walt Disney Studios as an animator, e found that he couldn’t satisfy his own need for creativity. Realizing that there were a lot of starving artists in this competitive field, he sought a career that would offer his wife more security and where he would be more physically active.
Law enforcement would become his career of choice. He served the community of Carlsbad for 26 years in the police department. He recently told his family that he didn’t want to retire because he loved his job so much. “They will have to kick me out,” he told a friend. His needs were fulfilled in all areas with this career. He would stay physically fit; enjoy his relationships with fellow officers and use his artistic talent in various capacities; i.e., by sketching a victim’s description of a perpetrator (who – based on this description – was apprehended) and a few years back designed the official log for Carlsbad P.D. vehicles.
During the three months of Larry’s illness he was honored by a stream of well-wishers on a daily basis. The person he was, so significant, was reflected by the fact that friends came to his bedside who hadn’t seen him in more than 30 years, to those who had recently shared in the loss of his mother. He was appreciative to all for the love extended. Good-natured and kind, Larry was a gentle giant who loved life and touched the hearts of many. He lived his life quietly with a humble heart, but embraced the world and made it a better place in which to live.
He is survived by his wife Linda. He also leaves behind his sister Barbara Eulette and three nieces of El Cajon, half-brother Ken Bradley of Dallas, TX, and – on his mother’s side of the family – two aunts, an uncle, and six cousins.
Services 10 a.m., Monday December 30, 2002, Carlsbad Community Church, 3175 Harding, Carlsbad.
Donations: Cancer research group of your choice.