Benton Harbor City Commissioners have approved some more honorary name changes. At a Monday meeting, they voted to rename the Benton Harbor Police Department building in honor of Andrew Rodez, the city’s first Black police chief. He served from 1973 to 1979. Commissioner Ron Singleton remembered him from his own days as a police officer.
“I think he was definitely a man before his time,” Singleton said. “In my pursuit of law enforcement, some of the things he did back then, or championed back then, came to life.”
Also Monday, commissioners renamed the Benton Harbor Fire Department in honor of John Billups, the city’s first Black fire chief. He started with the department in 1957 and was one of five African Americans to join the department that year. He continued to serve the city until he retired as chief in 1983. The fire department will now be known as the John Billups Fire Department, while the police department will be known as the Andrew L Rodez Police Department.
