WOOSTER Officer Matt Cruise took a trip down memory lane Friday as family, friends and people he has met throughout his career stopped at Freedlander Park to wish him well and a happy retirement.
Cruise s last working day was Friday though he officially will be retired as of Jan. 29. He dedicated 29 years of his 35-year law enforcement career to the Wooster Police Department.
Ten-year-old Madison Hale and her mother, Jessica Williams, were among those who visited him in a drive-thru style celebration. The mother and daughter brought vanilla cupcakes to Cruise, which they said are his favorite flavor.
Hale was diagnosed with cancer at 5 years old, and Williams struggled financially after having to take a number of days off work to care for her daughter.