Gwendolyn Dowdell

Gwendolyn Dowdell joined the Syracuse Police Department in 1986. She spent years building bridges between the community and her Department, while dedicating herself to her most vulnerable neighbors.

Ms. Dowdell worked with Vera House in Syracuse and was a dedicated detective and investigator in the Domestic Violence, Child Abuse, and the Missing Persons units. Caring and committed, Ms. Dowdell went above and beyond to get victims the help and support they so desperately needed. She also worked diligently to hold offenders accountable and make the victims feel like they mattered. For her work, Ms. Dowdell received the Sister Mary Vera Award, dedicated to citizens who serve those affected by domestic and sexual violence, while emulating the humility, gentleness and humanitarian spirit reflected by Sister Mary Vera.

Detective Dowdell has also received the Champion of Children Award, the PBA Merit and Valor Award, and numerous law enforcement commendations.

She retired from the Police Department in 2007, but her service continued. She became a School Resource Officer at Corcoran High School in the Syracuse City School District, before accepting a role as a security official at Onondaga Community College. Helen Hudson, Ms. Dowdell’s sister, is the founder of Mothers Against Gun Violence and is President of the Syracuse Common Council. She put it this way, “Gwen always finds her way back to those kids.”

During her years with the police, she served as Vice President of Camp 415, an organization of African American law enforcement officers who seek to strengthen relationships and awareness between the police and the community. Frank Fowler, a former president of Camp 415 and police chief for several years during Ms. Dowdell’s tenure, said her leadership shaped the careers of many police officers, including his own.

The group, Camp 415, was named in honor of the badge number of Wallie Howard Jr., a beloved Syracuse police investigator killed in the line of duty. Ms. Dowdell has joined with others who loved Wallie to make sure the community remembers who he was and what he stood for.

In a 2015 Syracuse Post-Standard article, Ms. Dowdell recalled seeing Wallie during shift changes, often when she felt the most tired. Wallie “had the ability to lift her spirits through sheer presence, through a smile that was akin to hitting a light switch in a dark place,” the article read. For so many in this community, Ms. Dowdell’s presence has a similar effect.