Ohio State Highway Patrol Marietta Post Commander Lt. Chris Chesar, right, gets emotional while speaking at a ceremony to celebrate his retirement Friday afternoon while his wife Rhonda Chesar, left, watches. Chesar’s last day as post commander was Friday and a replacement has not yet been chosen. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

MARIETTA — Ohio State Highway Patrol Marietta Post Commander Lt. Richard C. Chesar has retired.

Chesar, who goes by Chris, served his last day as post commander on Friday.

The Marietta Post was packed with members of the OSHP and other law enforcement agencies and Caesar’s friend and family on Friday to honor his work and career, congratulate him on his retirement and share stories and heartfelt messages with him.

The afternoon was filled with laughter and sometimes even some tears as people who trained Chesar and worked with him throughout his career, expressed their admiration for Chesar and how much they will miss him.

Chesar’s family was in attendance, including his mother and father, Helen and Richard Chesar, his wife Rhonda Chesar and his daughters, Rebecca, who Chesar calls “Beck,” and Rachel Chesar.

OSHP Cambridge District Staff Lt. Maurice Waddell spoke and gave an overview of Chesar’s career.

Waddell said Chesar started his law enforcement career in 1991 at the village of Byesville as a part-time patrol officer and a special deputy for the Guernsey County Sheriff’s Office. He said Chesar started his OSHP Career in 1997 at the Cambridge Post and won post trooper of the year in 2004.

According to Waddell, Chesar was promoted to sergeant and assigned to the St. Clairsville Post, later transferred to the Zanesville Post for eight months and then in March 2016 was promoted to lieutenant and assigned to the Marietta Post as post commander.

According to the OSHP website, the Marietta Post covers Washington and Morgan counties.

Wadell said he has met Chesar at the Cambridge Post and he has worked with Chesar his entire career.

“He was a mentor for me when I was a new troop,” Waddell said. “I looked up to him coming up through the ranks. He’s helped me out tremendously.”

He said Chesar has stayed the same person and not changed one bit through all of his promotions.

“The one thing everybody I’m sure will say is he cares about people,” Waddell said. “There’s no doubt about that.”

Some of the senior leadership at OSHP was at the ceremony, including Lt. Col. Joshua Swindell and OSHP Commander of the Office of Personnel Major Anne Ralston.

Ralston spoke about Chesar. She said she met him in 2000 when she transferred to the Cambridge Post.

“I will tell you those are absolutely some of my most favorite days of my entire career … I think Chris will say the same thing, that we really had something special and we were really taught how to be state troopers,” Ralston said of her time working with Chesar.

She said she remembers the discussion of picking the Marietta Post commander and wanting some who would take care of the people at the post.

“It was Chris and he’s done that so well,” she said with tears. “He didn’t know what was coming down the road but I was thankful that it was him.”

Chesar was presented with a certificate honoring his 27 years of service to the OSHP, a certificate and letter from Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted thanking him for his service and congratulating him on his retirement, a retirement ID card and a handmade beehive from people he has worked with at OHSP because he is a beekeeper as a hobby.

Chesar’s wife, Rhonda, was even presented a certificate for her support of him throughout his OSHP career.

Chesar spoke at length during the ceremony, at times getting emotional, speaking about his family, his career and his inspiration for wanting to be a member of the OSHP, his uncle Steve Stolarik, a retired member of the OSHP.

“Thank you to all who made me what I am today,” Chesar said. “Without your help, support, guidance and love I could not be here today.”

He thanked his wife for all her support over the years.

Chesar’s mother Helen Chesar spoke during the ceremony too.

“We go back a long way,” she said, which was met with laughter from attendees.

Helen Chesar said when Chris Chesar was 9 or 10 he had to write a paper for school about what he wanted to be when he grew up.

“I want to be a trooper like my uncle Steve,” Helen Chesar said he wrote. “And that admiration has carried him through all these years.”

She said when he was younger he wouldn’t answer to Chris, he would only answer to the name Steve.

“The admiration that all of you have shown him, you don’t know how proud that has made his dad and I …We are so proud of you to see how much support and how much of a difference you have made in how many lives has made a difference in our lives.”

She ended by congratulating him on his retirement and asking that God bless him always.

After the ceremony Chesar spoke about his plans for retirement, which are to work with his daughter Beck Chesar in the woodworking business they have started, to visit his father in Florida and to spend time with his wife traveling.

“What a wonderful career, wonderful,” Chesar said about his time at the OSHP. “Wonderful people to work with and be around. I encourage anyone who has any interest in law enforcement, join the Ohio State Highway Patrol. You will be a member of our family for life.”

He said his daughter asked him the other day if he has a favorite story from his time in the OSHP.

“I’ve thought of times where I’ve saved peoples’ lives, changed peoples’ lives, but it was being with the people, (that) is my favorite story,” Chesar said. “And what they have done for me and what I was able to do for them.”

He said he is going to miss the people he worked with at the OSHP and in law enforcement in Washington and Morgan counties the most and he appreciates everyone that came to the ceremony.

Chesar’s last day was Friday. According to OSHP Assistant Marietta Post Commander Sergeant Eric Knowlton, Chesar’s successor has not been chosen yet.

Michelle Dillon can be reached at mdillon@newsandsentinel.com