SOMERS, N.Y. - Michael W. Driscoll Sr. has answered his final radio call.
The former Somers police chief died on Monday, July 21, at the age of 87.
Remembered for his dogged dedication to the public good, his sense of fair play, and his devotion to family – both his own and his brethren in blue – “Mike” retired in 2021 after a distinguished 55-year career in law enforcement.
After working with the NYPD in the South Bronx for two decades, Driscoll joined the Somers police in 1986.
He spent the last 31 years at that post as chief.
Just before hanging up his badge, Driscoll had made a speech in honor of Peace Officers Day, a ceremony honoring those killed or disabled in the line of duty.
Among the words of wisdom he imparted on that solemn May occasion?
Police officers are “human beings, no more, no less, than anybody else” who are united by the “simple desire to help people.”
It was a personal philosophy he carried with him all his life, according to his youngest son, Eugene.
“At the end of the day, he believed police work was community service. You’re there to make your community better,” he said.
Driscoll and his late wife, Therese, raised five boys – Michael Jr., Joseph, Thomas, who followed in his dad’s footsteps and became a police officer: James, and Eugene – in a modest home in the close-knit hamlet of Lake Lincolndale.
He worked multiple jobs – including security and administration at a local nursing home – to support his family, including his Irish mom, Ellie, who lived with them.
Despite his “tough guy” image, which was sort of a “police officer thing,” Driscoll had a whole different side to him whenever he encountered folks in need, especially the isolated, elderly, disabled, or those with drug or alcohol problems, according to Eugene.
“It’s about helping people, not kicking them when they’re down. Remember, there’s always somebody better than you,” he recalled his dad telling him.
While not always able to attend soccer games and band concerts because of his practically round-the-clock work schedule, when he did, Driscoll wasn’t one of those parents who yelled and screamed at players and coaches from the sidelines.
That would have been disrespectful in his eyes, Eugene said, adding that he was “soft-spoken” and “a good example for all of his sons.”
After his beloved wife died, Driscoll really didn’t know what “to do with himself,” so he tried to keep busy with “projects” around the house and in the yard, Eugene said, adding: “Inevitably, he’d wind up calling on Tommy or Joey for help.”
Driscoll was also a big softie when it came to his eight beloved grandchildren.
“They had him wrapped around their little fingers,” Eugene said.
The same was true with the Driscoll family pets, of which there were many over the years.
Although they had cats, dad preferred dogs, especially a pooch that he’d found at a gun range.
Kind of goofy and not very well trained, “Fluffy” would look very puzzled when Driscoll – known for his sense of humor – would joke: “Find the dope. Find the dope.”
Current Somers police Chief Brian Linkletter, who was hired by Driscoll in 2003, also shared some memories.
Calling him a “man of very high integrity,” Linkletter said his mentor was “proud to be a Marine” and “loved being a cop.”
“He really cared about people, especially older people,” he said, adding that Driscoll had seen “a lot” of tough stuff over the years but never let that cause him to succumb to apathy or cynicism.
When asked in 2021 to sum up those five-plus-decades in uniform, Driscoll modestly told Halston Media: “I did my job. I did the best I could. Got a paycheck. That’s the way it is. The next person will make it better.”
Here is Driscoll’s 10-7 – verbatim -- as supplied by his family:
Former Somers Police Department Chief Michael W. Driscoll, Sr., a father of five sons and husband of the late Therese F. Driscoll, passed away on July 21, 2025. He was 87 years old.
He was born in the Bronx, N.Y. Jan. 13, 1938, and was a graduate of St. Simon Stock Catholic School.
He served four years in the United States Marine Corps before joining the New York City Police Department in 1961.
He worked in the 48th Precinct. He was named patrolman of the month by New York City media in February 1967 for rescuing a 13-year-old boy from the icy waters of the Bronx River.
He transferred into Truck 3 in the Bronx of the NYPD’s elite Emergency Services Unit (ESU).
On May 3, 1962, he married Therese (Mahon). They moved from the Bronx to Lake Lincolndale, a quiet hamlet in the Town of Somers, N.Y. where they raised five sons in a modest home that included Ellie, his Irish-born mother.
His work ethic was unparalleled. He always worked at least two jobs to support his family.
Upon retiring from the NYPD in 1981, he worked as security at Somers Manor Nursing Home, where he eventually became the facility’s assistant administrator. Later he was the administrator of the Nathan Miller Nursing Home in White Plains.
He put himself through college as an adult while working full-time, earning a bachelor’s degree (cum laude) from the New York Institute of Technology.
In 1986, he was hired as a patrol officer for the Somers Police Department. Four years later he was appointed the chief (first officer in charge) of the department – a position he held for 31 years before retiring to be with his ailing wife, Therese, who passed away in 2021.
In all, he worked as a police officer for 55 years.
He was tough and he was quiet by nature, but he also loved to laugh.
Each grandbaby was serenaded with “Oh, poo-poo pants.”
The girlfriends brought home to meet the family were always greeted with “You’re not staying for dinner, right?”
He sang along to Irish music every Sunday on Fordham University’s radio station, WFUV.
He was a friend of Bill’s. He believed in never kicking a person while they were down.
When a gunman with a substance abuse problem held police at bay in Somers in the early 2000s, he approached the man and asked, “Do you want to go to a meeting?”
He loved his wife. She was his anchor for 53 years. He was not the same after she died.
He missed her each day they were apart. Now they are together again.
Chief Driscoll is survived by his son Michael Jr., and his wife, Diane, of Clearwater Beach, Fla., and their children, Dennis and Jennifer; son Joseph, and his wife, Barbara, of Ridgefield, Conn., and their children, Megan and Matthew; son Thomas, who took great care of him in the final years, and his wife, Creslyn, of Pine Island, N.Y., along with their children, Thomas and Daniel; son James, of Lake Lincolndale; and son Eugene, and his wife, Autumn, of Derby, Conn. and their children, Jack and Emma.
Additionally, he is survived by a sister, Eileen Gerathy, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by his wife, Therese; a sister, Mary; his mother, Ellie; and his father, Michael.
SERVICES
Calling hours are 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday, July 31, at Cargain Funeral Home, 418 Route 6, Mahopac, N.Y. (GPS US-6)
A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 1, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 95 Plumbrook Road, Somers, N.Y.
Following the Mass, Michael will be escorted to his final resting place at St. Joseph's Cemetery, 357 Route 202, Somers, N.Y.
