Ronald Randolph Rowland
January 25, 1943 ~ May 13, 2026
Born in:
Queens, NY
Resided in:
Kings Park, NY
Ronald Randolph Rowland of Kings Park passed away peacefully on May 13, 2026.
Ron was born in Queens on January 25, 1943, to Beatrice Wolf Rowland and Randolph Fletcher Rowland.
He met the love of his life, Judith Frank, at the 1964 New York World’s Fair. They were married on August 12, 1967, and built a life centered on family, friendship, and community.
Ron proudly served in the United States Army from 1960 to 1963 before beginning a distinguished career with the New York City Transit Police Department in May 1965. Through hard work and dedication, he rose through the ranks to become a one-star Chief. Following the merger of the Transit Police with the New York City Police Department, Ron remained deeply proud of his service and lifelong connection to law enforcement. He retired in 2004 after 38 years with the NYPD.
Ron earned his bachelor’s degree from New York Institute of Technology and was also a graduate of the prestigious FBI National Academy.
He was predeceased by his parents; his sister, Muriel “Midge” Annito; and his brother, Paul Rowland.
He is survived by his wife, Judy; his son Ronald (Sarah); his daughter Chrysa Smalley (Christopher); and his beloved grandchildren Chase, Georgia, Carter Rowland, Juliet, Lauren, and Christopher Smalley.
Ron loved being part of the NYPD family and cherished the lifelong friendships he made throughout his career. He enjoyed meeting his neighbors in both Wantagh and Kings Park, where he formed many great friendships over the years. One of Ron’s favorite pastimes was cheering for his beloved teams, the New York Mets and the New York Jets. Known as “Chief” to his grandchildren, he found his greatest joy cheering them on at their sporting events, traveling near and far to make it to games whenever he could. Whether it was basketball, lacrosse, or soccer, Ron was always part of the cheering section and quickly became friends with many of the parents and families along the way.
He will be remembered for his dedication to his family, his service to his city and country, his terrible jokes and the warmth and friendship he shared with everyone who knew him.
Services
Visitation:
Saturday, May 16, 2026
1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Branch Funeral Home of Commack
2115 Jericho Turnpike
Commack, NY 11725
Military Honors:
Saturday, May 16, 2026
4:00 pm
Branch Funeral Home of Commack
2115 Jericho Turnpike
Commack, NY 11725
Religious Service:
Saturday, May 16, 2026
4:15 pm
Branch Funeral Home of Commack
2115 Jericho Turnpike
Commack, NY 11725
Private- Cremation:
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Charities
The family greatly appreciates donations made to these charities in Ronald Randolph Rowland 's name.
Wounded Warrior Project
4899 Belfort Road Suite 300
Jacksonville,
FL
Memories Timeline
Guestbook
Sign the Guestbook, Light a Candle
Thank you so much for these kind words.
Chrysa (his daughter)
To us, Ron was more than a friend – he was family. He wasn’t just a true “Pal” to Grayson, but his first real friend. Over time, he stole our hearts and became a cherished part of our lives. We are so grateful for the joy, love, and unforgettable moments he shared with our family.
Sending love and light to Judy and family, and to all who were fortunate enough to know and love Ron.
With love,
Paul, Michele, Grayson, and Everly Rae
Thank you so much. We all adore your mom Lucy. She is a great friend.
Ron’s daughter Chrysa
Thank you for your kind words. He is the best.
Chrysa
Rest in Peace Ron
Thank you. A great man!
Chrysa (his daughter)
Thank you 😊
Chrysa
RIP My Transit Brother and Friend… Ronnie y
You Will Be Missed My Friend !!!
Thank you so much:
Chrysa
Sincere Condolences to the Rowland family 💙
Love Kelly Etheridge
Thank you so much. I love this story
Chrysa his daughter
Thanks Al
Love you
I’m so sorry 😢 My thoughts, prayers and love being sent to the Rowland Family. I’m blessed to have had so many amazing childhood memories with Mr. Rowland. ❤️
Thx Steph
My since condolences goes to the Rowland family . RIP Ronnie, I will never forget what you did for me. You were a stand up human being. Randy Stoever
Thank you so much.
Chrysa his daughter
Chief Rowland was a great boss, great person and great friend. He was the kind of person you want to be around. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family.
From the Buonsante family May Ronnie RIP. A wonderful and respected human being as well as a one of the finest supervisors that anyone can work for. Many memories as we competed in the Transit Softball League. He will be missed. RIP brother.
Ronnie was a Police Officer when I was a Trainee at the old Operations unit in Jay St in July of 1969. He was a great guy , funny and sarcastic at the same time. I watched him fly through the ranks , always keeping his sense of humor. May you Rest in Peace. Condolences to Judith and the family
My condolences to the Rowland family. May Ronnie “Rest in Peace”
My condolences to the Roland family I met Ron on the job in the 60s and 70s we played softball together he was a fun person to be around have great memories. Lots of laughs. Rest in peace, Ron.🙏🏻👮♂️🇺🇸
I love this story.
Thank you so much for sharing
Our condolences go out to the Rowland family
hello and thank you so much
thank you for sharing
My sincere condolences to Judy and family, I met Ron in 1973 playing softball with the New York Transit Police we became
good friends i will always remember him as kind and wonderful teammate and friend.
Hi George
It’s Muffin 🙂
yes he spoke of you all often
thank you for sharing
P.S. I’m only saying this once – lets go Mets!
I love you.
Grayson
I cant wait to meet you.
Chrysa
Rons daughter
So many happy memories spent at CYO games with the whole Rowland family. All of us enjoyed seeing Ron and Judy revel in Ron’s talents as a coach and Chase’s talents as an athlete. My condolences to the whole family. May he rest in peace.
thank you for sharing
Thank you Janice
thank you
So sorry to hear of your father’s passing. My condolences. RIIP
Our sincere condolences to Judy and family.
We got to know Ron and Judy when we were at the Lakebridge pool and Joe mentioned to Ron that it was our fiftieth anniversary and we were going to go out. He thought I was making a joke because it was their fiftieth anniversary that day. . I assured him it was no joke and we shared congratulations. We offered each other best wishes and Happy Anniversary every year since.
Ron was a special friend to many of us at Lakebridge. His efforts to organize two golf outings each year were truly great gifts to the community.
Rest in peace!
I love this story thank you for sharing
thank you
I will miss you Chief. GREAT boss, but even a better kind, loving, wonderful person. Never seen him get angry and had a great sense of humor.
Many great memerable times together both on and off duty, golfing, dinners etc. Always joked at me that I was “right out of central casting!)
May you rest in eternal peace in God’s loving arms!
thank you so much for sharing
My condolences to the Rowland Family.
I met Ron about 1995 while working for Macy’s. From the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to the July 4th Fireworks Ron was a partner I could always reach out to. Whatever support Ron and his team could give to the event he was there to help. Macy’s and myself were fortunate to have Ron’s partnership. Thank you Ron! Rest in Peace.
Thank you for sharing this story. He loved the parade and of course he loved fire works even more!
I probably cannot do a eulogy. For those that don’t know I was my brothers Best Man at his wedding but for my speech at his wedding I joked that I was really his Best Fan. This is true but it leads me to realize that I must have inherited that from my dad. He was everyone’s Best Fan. He read the newspaper front to back every single day. He was at all of my kids games. We would drive all over Long Island together in all sorts of weather just to catch even half of one game to get to half of another. He knew every player, every coach, even every bad ref and every parent. He knew about kids from Nassau County and could speak of their accolades to our friends in other towns. . I guess heaven needed a man who was up to date on current events, professional sports, college sports and local sports. I guess heaven needed their very own SUPER FAN. I will miss every single thing about you dad and I will take care of mom but I know you know that. Until we hang out again. All my love. Thank you for shaping me.
I pray the Good Lord take you into His Heavenly home.
Condolences to Judy, Ron and Chrysa
Mr. Rowland, my childhood next door neighbor. He always sang the song, “Denise” by Randy and the Rainbows to me. I had never heard the song before but to this day every time I hear it I think of him. My most heartfelt condolences to Mrs. Rowland, Ron and Chrysa. You were all such a big part of my childhood and of the neighborhood. All the kids knew Mr. and Mrs. Rowland.
He will always live among us. His compassion, strength, and understanding will forever remain in our hearts. He was not only a great boss, but a wise and respected leader, who touched so many lives.
My children will always remember the times they visited the command and how kind and welcoming you were to them. He will be deeply missed, my Chief, my friend, and my brother in blue 💙
Thank you for making me proud to be part of the New York City Transit Police. Rest in peace. 🙏😢
You were a wonderful friend and neighbor. You will be so missed at the Lakebridge community.
Rest in peace Ron.
So sorry for your traumatic loss. We only knew Ron as a friend and neighbor of Lakebridge but I know how well he was liked especially by all his close pool buddies.
Our condolences and prayers
Elaine and Rick Stanco
It’s hard for me to write this but please believe me it’s all true…….you see I’m a writer but when I was 23/I met your Dad in Jay Street….we had a lot in common. . I was assigned to work for Chief Colby, Chief of Patrol. Of course being the new kid on the block someone had to introduce me to the rest of the crew. That someone was a dark haired vibrant Ronnie Rowland. I never forgot that day we met He was always moving always happy just like me…there was Lt. Oelerich, Sgt Valentine, Sgt Nove, Freddy Luciano, Sam Dinoto at the front desk and more. Your Dad was someone like me who really loved life, we were both athletic, I played Football, Baseball, Basketball ran track later in life even Jai-Alai…..I left the Police and moved on in life but those guys remained etched in my memory. The rest of this note is true believe me….. For some strange reason I told one of my sons about those days about 3 weeks ago and he asked if I ever kept in touch with any of those guys, i said only one Maxie Wahrman we stayed close friend till he passed away many years ago. That night I thought of Ronnie Rowland…..what ever happened to that guy…..The very next day I looked at the Transit web-site first time since probably last summer. There he was, I did a double take how was it possible but it happened to me a few years ago with another guy who I met that day Richard Cote the guy who I also never forgot, I dreamt we were at the beach together with our kids 50 years probably since I thought about hi and the same thing …..words can never express the loss of a loved one means to there family and close friends but take from this note that your Dad was someone the great Jimmy T never forgot….