Community & Business
14 July, 2021
Rhodes awarded Meritorious Medal for momentous service
AFTER dedicating his life to protecting others, Inspector Russell Rhodes has been recognised for his years of service to the Police force and the communities he has served.
AFTER dedicating his life to protecting others, Inspector Russell Rhodes has been recognised for his years of service to the Police force and the communities he has served.
Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll made a special trip to Cairns last week to present Inspector Rhodes with the prestigious ‘Meritorious Service Medal’, recognising his career that started 40 years ago.
After initially being recommended for the Australian Police Medal (APM), Russell’s incredible service record pushed him higher, therefore receiving the Meritorious Service Medal.
Inspector Rhodes was recommended for the APM by dignitaries such retired superintendent Rolf Straatemeier and past Tablelands Regional Council Mayor Joe Paronella.
“I’ve been told by other mates that this is a much better award for an individual compared to an APM,” Inspector Rhodes said.
“It is for people who have done exceptional service having never been in trouble.
“I’ve had a lot of phone calls from mates saying how important it was and how happy they were for me to have received it.”
As soon as Russell graduated from St Augustine’s College in Cairns, he enrolled straight into the academy.
Finishing his training in July 1982 Russell started his long and eventful career on the force by returning to the north, working in the Mareeba district for an initial four years.
With an extensive service record covering areas across the Far North, Russell has always made a point to fully ingrain himself in the community he serves.
From Georgetown to the Cape he has developed community outreach and engagement programs that had profound impacts on the communities.
“In Georgetown I used to teach all the kid’s athletes, sports and everything like that, I coached all the kids in Malanda as well,” Inspector Rhodes said.
“When you are at these one man stations like Georgetown, Croydon and all those places you really get involved in the towns.
"We raised over $200,000 with the charity golf days I used to organise, and it was all about giving the money to police officer mates, who had sick people in their lives.”
During his stays in the many towns that he served Russell often found himself as the acting inspector, a position he permanently achieved when promoted to be the Cape York inspector.
As the Cape York inspector Russell was on the ground during the investigation for the Lockhart River crash in 2005, a crash that took the life of fellow officer and friend, Sally Urquhart.
During the aftermath of Cyclone Yasi Russell was appointed to work with the Cassowary Coast Regional Council helping with relief efforts and disaster management.
From 2011 to 2018 Russell returned to the Townsville Police Academy as the inspector in charge where he oversaw 14 squads, 619 recruits go through the same process he did many years before.
Despite his years of service and exceptional track record, Russell never moved above the position of Inspector, by his own choice.
“I could of went higher but the commissioners wanted me to go down south as a superintendent or above,” Inspector Rhodes said.
“But I always wanted to stay here.
“I was happy here just being the local inspector.”
Inspector Rhodes is currently on leave due to health issues, until his retirement later in the year.
