Sergeant who brought smiles to faces Roger Terence Kappe Police officer Born: Lobethal on November 17, 1944 Died: Elizabeth Vale on December 7, 2003

Sergeant Roger Kappe could walk into the most volatile situations and calm the mouthiest troublemakers, with actions such as a simple handshake. Those on whom the tall, laid-back supervisor plied his craft never quite knew how to respond, other than to recoil. But that was his aim: to resolve matters peacefully. And, most times, he achieved it.

Police officers who knew the Elizabeth patrol sergeant remember a quiet unassuming man, for whom no one ever had a bad word. During his 38-year career – spent almost entirely in Adelaide’s northern suburbs – he earned the respect of virtually every cop who served with him.

Sgt Kappe had wanted to be a police officer since his teens and, through his working life, never considered switching careers. But, before he could retire from the job he loved, the highly respected supervisor died, on December 7 last year. At the age of just 59, he had lost a short battle with cancer.

His family and colleagues paid their final respects to him in an emotional service at Enfield Memorial Park cemetery on December 11.

A long-time friend and colleague, Sergeant Ian Dix, spoke of a “gentle man” who would “do anything to help”. And Ruth Quick, one of Sgt Kappe’s former team members, delivered a eulogy, in which she told of a supervisor who was “never authoritarian”.

“He was extremely fair, very much down-to-earth and very democratic in how he led,” she said after the service. “People on his team felt very warmly towards him. I don’t think you’d be able to find one person who would speak ill of Roger.

“Whenever you spoke of Roger, it would bring a smile to everybody’s face. He was just a nice bloke, and really didn’t bitch about people: I never once heard him say a bad word about anybody.

“He always used to call people ‘young fella’, all the younger guys. It was like they were his sons. He would treat people almost like family. He will be sorely missed.”

Ms Quick also related some of the many times she, her team-mates and Sgt Kappe spent in laughter. Most involved Sgt Kappe’s misadventures with cooking. On one evening, he had placed an alfoil-encased TV dinner in a police station microwave oven.

“What Roger didn’t know, however, was that alfoil and microwaves just don’t mix,” Ms Quick said. “The lightshow coming out of that microwave was, by all accounts, pretty spectacular.”

Born in Lobethal, Sgt Kappe grew up in Mount Torrens, where he also went to primary school. He undertook his secondary education at Oakbank Area School, before he made his first attempt to join the police force as a 17-year-old in 1962.

Turned away, he joined the Australian Defence Force, in which he served as a soldier for three years. Then, in May 1965, he succeeded in his second attempt to join SAPOL, and began an adult training course.

After early stints in the city and Woodside, Sgt Kappe served the rest of his career based at Prospect, Para Hills, Holden Hill, Salisbury and Elizabeth.

Away from police work, he enjoyed sailing, fishing and golf. In the mid-1970s, he built his own 14-foot Hartley yacht, in which he and Sgt Dix, and their families, sailed around Port Vincent and Port Elliot on holidays.

He had also travelled interstate with the SA Police Golf Club and, on a holiday in England, relished a game he played in Cornwall.

Elizabeth LSA boss, Superintendent Roger Zeuner, said Sgt Kappe’s death had left a pall of sadness over the workplace. “It was sort of disbelief that this could happen to such a nice person, in such a short time,” he said.

Sgt Kappe is survived by his wife, Pauline, daughters Tricia and Vicki, and grandchildren Joshua, Jaydn and Imogen.

– Brett Williams