FLINT, Michigan — During the summer of 1965, down a dirt road called Wagner Street in Beecher, a six-year-old Ronnie Summers would do everything any other kid would at that time.
“That was one of the best parts of my life. I had good friends, a lot of friends,” he explains. Gathering together, Summers and his friends would play ‘Cops and Robbers,’ unaware of what the universe would ultimately have in store for him.
As he grew older, Summers found himself outgrowing, or even being consumed by, the environment around him. In his mind, “I wanted to prove everybody wrong — that I wasn’t going to be dead or in jail.” Holding steadfast to that belief, he was unsure of his future, especially in the place he had called home for nineteen years.
In 1982, looking for any way to better himself, 23-year-old Summers signed up for the military. Betting on himself, Summers was positive this was his path, and with a smile, he explains, “That was a turning point in my life that I’ll never forget. It was the best decision I ever made.”
Summers proudly served in the United States Army for ten years, working his way up to a Military Police Officer position. During this time, he shaped himself into the kind of person destiny called for and developed a sense of discipline and respect for the chain of command. The military prepared him for the next thirty years of his life.
In 1992, stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado, he once again wondered what was next, but a phone call with his brother Danny back home quickly became his next best decision. During that conversation, Summers learned that the Flint City Police Department was hiring. Wasting no time, he packed up everything and relocated back to Flint.
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Ronnie Summers poses for a portrait photo on August 11, 2024. (Anthony Summers | Flintside.com)“In 1993, I applied for the City of Flint Police Department and got accepted into the police academy,” Summers says with a smile as if looking back proudly at his younger self, who officially joined the academy in March of 1994. “I was still army fit, so their little physical part of the academy was nothing to me. I was running two miles or more like it was nothing, and they thought that was something big.”
Summers found himself thankful for the long morning-to-night marches he regularly endured. They prepared him for what most would find to be the hardest part of becoming a police officer: working undercover.
On July 4, 1994, rookie officer Ronnie Summers took on the dangerous job of going undercover into known drug houses. At 35, he assumed the mantle of trying to save the city he grew up in, one drug bust at a time.
However, between the crack epidemic and soaring murder rates, the thriving automotive city Flint used to be and the same neighborhoods he used to play in as a child were now unrecognizable.
“I did the undercover thing for about a year. I had to go because I hadn’t learned the streets yet. I went from the academy straight into undercover,” Summers says, reflecting on the early years of his long and decorated career. “It was sort of like a sink or swim kind of thing; they sent you right out into the houses. We felt good going into it. We were one of the biggest graduating classes at the time with 40.”
Summers served the City of Flint for nearly three decades. From 1994 to 2022, he had one of the most unique perspectives on the city’s changes.
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Pictured on August 11, 2024, Summers wears a chain with the Flint City Police badge on it, honoring the work he did. (Anthony Summers | Flintside.com)“I think the real issue that Flint needs to address is they need more boots on the ground. They need more police officers. They need quality police officers. They need police officers who have an investment in the community,” he expressed.
“You know, you got these people coming in that’s not from Flint, not from the streets, and they come, they get the training, and they leave to a safer place to police. You know, they want the badge, they want the gun, but they don’t want the headache of being the police in a place like Flint.”
His service is an achievement amongst many that he holds very close to his heart. Summers was awarded the Officer of the Year award by ‘The 100 Club’, a non-profit organization that recognizes outstanding public servants for their efforts to support the community on three separate occasions.
“I wouldn’t change a thing. I had a wonderful career; as most know, I am a three-time MVP,” Summers brags while raising both fists in the air, grinning from ear to ear.
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Ronnie Summers reflects on his tenure and offers advice to future police officers. (Anthony Summers | Flintside.com)Reflecting on his tenure, he expressed that the most important thing was to keep work at work. In retirement at 65, Summers wishes to communicate his advice to his younger colleagues. He says, “People [and] citizens want to be heard. They want someone to listen to them, and I would advise any rookie to listen. They called you for a reason. You got to make the difference.”
Today, after a long and dedicated career serving the city, Summers hopes that he has positively impacted his community.
“I would like to thank Flint for giving me the opportunity to do what I did. They accepted me as a police officer. I treated every last one of you with respect, and you treated me with respect. It was a sad day [when] I left, but I’m glad I left. Not that it was a bad job; it was a good job. But it was time for me to go. God said, ‘It’s time for you to go.’ And that’s what I did.”