You never know when an event in your life, no matter how big or small, will change the road you decide to go down. In the case of Tega Cay police chief Joey Crosby, we can give our thanks to Sergeant Bass of the Florence, SC police department.
Twelve year old Joey found a wallet in the backyard of his house. When he told his father what he found, the elder Crosby provided a lesson on responsibility, advising Joey to hand the wallet over to the police. Joey had no issues turning the wallet in; however, he was terrified of meeting one policeman in particular. Although he didn’t know his name at the time, Sergeant Bass was known as “that officer” to young Joey. More monstrous than man, he was the last man in blue Joey wanted to meet for the hand off.
As fate would have it, “that officer” arrived on the scene to meet with Joey. Sergeant Bass turned out to be more man than monster. He spent over an hour with Joey, making a lasting impression on a young man who up to that point wasn’t sure what he wanted to do in life. The encounter charted a new course, “I knew I wanted to make a difference in the community I was in,” said Joey when recollecting the meeting.
Joey Crosby was born in Charleston, South Carolina but was raised in Florence. His parents would move to Myrtle Beach several years later. A standout high school baseball player, he received a scholarship to continue playing at Newberry College. An injury in his first semester derailed his baseball dreams and he returned home to start work at the family business.
A chance ride along with a local officer rekindled childhood thoughts of joining the police force. One month after his 21st birthday, he was hired by the Myrtle Beach police department. With no college degree (at the time) and zero experience, Joey is fully aware he was handed a gift. “I will be forever grateful for the opportunity I was given.”
At one point, Joey’s goal was to become a sergeant, never thinking or perhaps even wanting to dream bigger. He was able to blow past this goal. In 24 years on the force in Myrtle Beach, Joey worked his way up to Captain of the Investigative Division while earning his undergrad and graduate degrees from Columbia College.
At one point he planned and coordinated major events within the city to ensure safety standards were met and officers were trained and ready for the ensuing onslaught of visitors. This included the infamous and always crowded Bike Week, an event that brings upwards of 400,000 people to Myrtle Beach each year.
Although he was thriving in Myrtle Beach, the community was ever changing. Joey wanted to work in a city where he would become part of the community, preferably one that didn’t change week to week. After seeing a job opening for the role of Tega Cay Police Chief, he saw an opportunity to set down roots in a community where he could “see the people I serve each day.”
As was the case with Mayor Gray and Fire Chief Hasty, Joey is a leader who’s quick to give credit to others rather than assume credit for himself. As we talked, he wanted to make sure I captured the positive difference the officers within the department are making in the community. “They create a positive light for the organization,” he said, “I’m so proud of them, what they do, and how they represent our community.”
Leaders lead, but they also love their subordinates like family. Joey is no exception. He began to tear up when discussing a fellow officer who had been killed on the job. “This is not something you can turn on and off,” he said. “These people are my family, I’m always worried about them.”
On the job for two years as of next month, Joey was also effusive in his praise of the culture that had been built prior to his arrival, “The culture is nothing I’ve done, it’s because of them and what they’ve built.” A culture that includes stories of officers buying someone’s gas or dinner because they didn’t have money or taking the shoes off their feet to give to someone who needed them. Although he doesn’t brag about himself, it took no effort for Chief Crosby to provide these and other examples of his officers taking pride in the work they do for our community. 
Asked what residents can do to help keep our city safe, Joey spoke of working hand in hand with city residents, “This is a partnership and the community needs to see it as such. We need to work collaboratively together.” With talk of de-funding the police in other cities along with the issues many similar sized cities in our state and throughout the country are facing, this perspective was certainly encouraging to hear.
Although we’re fortunate to live in one of the safest cities in South Carolina, Chief Crosby and his team remain vigilant to keep it that way. “ We need to continue to be forward thinking. How do we address future issues? We need to be proactive instead of reactive.”
When speaking of the city council, he was complimentary of the relationships he’s built thus far and the way they’ve been able to work together, “This council has been very supportive in listening to things that are brought to their attention and why we need them.” The partnership includes a 3 year plan, which can be adjusted as needed based on future growth or other unforeseen circumstances. For now, the department is fully staffed. A new officer is starting this week as a matter of fact.
Living in Tega Cay with his longtime partner Angela and high school age daughter, Chief Crosby definitely got his wish. He’s a member of a community that’s thankful to have him and his team utilize their servant hearts to keep us safe. He’s working equally hard to keep his family of officers and staff out of harms way, only too aware of the dangers they face on a daily basis. In what has been a relatively short time, you can tell he already loves Tega Cay, this community and the people he works with.
More importantly, Bike Week is no longer a concern. This has been happily replaced with laughing kids on bikes riding home from school through the city he helps keep safe.
