Council Adjourns in Memory of John Kendall, Extraordinary Police Volunteer Who Donated 8,000 Hours

The Pasadena City Council adjourned Monday night in memory of John Kendall, a citizen volunteer at the Pasadena Police Department who donated over 8,000 hours of his time and is remembered as the Department’s jovial Santa Claus during its annual holiday gift basket giveaway to needy families.

Kendall died June 5 in Pasadena at 87 after a courageous battle with poor health for more than a year.

“The world is a darker place without John Kendall,” Chief of Police Phillip Sanchez said. “John was a fixture at the police department. Everyone – I mean everyone – would stop to say hello. You knew when John was at the police department be the smiles on the officer’s faces and the laughter in the hallways.”

Kendall had wanted to join the police department after completing his naval service in the early 1950s, but after slowly moving up the eligibility list, he focused instead on supporting his family through other work. He kept close connections to the Pasadena Police Department through his constant companion: his police radio scanner.

When Kendall’s daughter, Shar Stafford, joined the CAPP program, she encouraged him to participate and he became a volunteer in 2005.

Kendall was a fixture at weekly Citizen Police Academy classes, serving food (and enjoying some of it too) and encouraging others to join the volunteer program.

For several years he had a full time schedule as he patrolled twice per week with his partner Tom Pico, as they wrote handicap violation tickets, and even helped facilitate the arrest of a suspect involved in a car burglary. Kendall spent the remaining three days at the front desk, ready to greet citizens with a cheerful smile. The officers and department staff also looked forward to the pan dulce and donuts that he’d bring each week.

Kendall helped at the mobile command post for every UCLA game at the Rose Bowl, and enjoyed chatting with the public and fostering positive connections between the community and the police.

He took pride in serving any request made of him, from 5:00am calls to set up officer driving tests to volunteer call-outs day or night.

During the holiday season, Kendall was the resident Santa Claus, donning the big red suit and hearing wishes of local kids in the department lobby, and then traveling the city delivering gifts to children and families in need.

As his health issues progressed and he was unable to go on patrol, Kendall continued his service at the Community Curbside Chats, talking with citizens and staffing the mobile command post.

Kendall was a dedicated volunteer for 10 years, and in that time logged over 8,000 hours. He received a departmental commendation in 2014 and the Casey Jones Volunteer Service Award. His legacy of citizenship will live on as his family continues to be of service to the department; Kendall’s daughters Shar and Laura Kendall, and granddaughter Kristin Vigil are CAPP volunteers, and his grandson Justin Kendall is a general volunteer.

Chief Sanchez has said that Kendall “embodied the spirit of volunteerism.”

The love and appreciation for Kendall and his family was evident in the visits from Chief Sanchez and the nearly 90 officers and department staff who visited Kendall’s bedside during his illness.

Service information is pending and will be released as soon as confirmed. In lieu of flowers, donations may be directed to the Pasadena Police Department.