The phone rang in Baldwin police Chief Chris Kelly's office.
"Ex-chief Kelly," he answered with a smirk.
His wife was on the other line.
But after Tuesday's borough council meeting, the secret was revealed.
Mayor Alexander Bennett read Kelly's retirement announcement with a quivering voice during the meeting Tuesday to a dead silent council.
The retirement is effective as soon as council approves his petition, but Kelly will remain with the department to help with the transition for the next chief.
Kelly, 54, retires after 35 years as a police officer, including the last 20 as Baldwin's chief. He cited health reasons as part of the reason for his retirement.
Through his career, Kelly said he suffered 13 major head injuries, was stabbed once, and fell three stories through a burning building, among other injuries. He recently had surgery on his hand after being hit by a car.
Kelly described the policing as "a young man's game."
"You don't bounce back."
However, the decision to retire did not come quickly.
"When you make a decision to retire, it's very traumatic," Kelly said. "You wrestle with it every night."
Council members were wrestling with the announcement during and after the agenda meeting. They sat quietly for half a minute after Bennett finished reading Kelly's letter.
"A man this community is definitely going to miss," councilman Butch Ferris said, breaking the silence.
Even after the meeting, words were few and far between. Councilman Michael Stelmascyzk said he was sad to see the chief go, and councilwoman Joan Etzel said the council was "taking it in."
"He brought this department to a true, honest police department," Bennett said. "He will probably never, ever be replaced."
Council approved by a 6-0 vote, with Ferris absent, a $21,500 pay raise for Kelly in April, setting his salary at $115,500. He received the raise after council conducted a study of chief's pay at comparable departments.
Kelly described his career as "a storybook," and credited his fellow officers for his accomplishments through the years.
He began his career in Homestead in 1974. His first day on the job, a day he recalls with vivid detail, helped establish a code he has lived by in the 35 years since.
Toward the end of his shift, he and his partner arrived at an old woman's house to deliver a death announcement, Kelly said.
When the woman answered the door, his partner handed her the number of the coroner's office and left with no further explanation, despite the woman's confusion about what was happening.
"From that day, I learned to never leave people in that condition," Kelly said. "Compassion goes a long way."
