Sunnyside Police Department announces two retirees

After 30 years of service with the Sunnyside Police Department, Patrol Sergeant Ollie Hernandez is retiring at the end of the month on May 31.

Born and raised in Sunnyside, Hernandez graduated from Sunnyside High School in 1987.

After graduation, he joined the Marine Corps where he was assigned to 1st FSSG of 1st Mar Division and was deployed to the Gulf War for Operation Desert Storm/Desert Shield as an engineer.

Upon return to Camp Pendleton in 1991, he was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps, his daughter Aarika was born, and he married Julie Zymball.

Sergeant Hernandez returned to Sunnyside and bought a home near the rest of his family where he worked as a Security Liaison for the Sunnyside School District working hand-in-hand with the Police Department.

Sergeant Hernandez’ older brother, Ricky Hernandez, was killed by a drunk driver in 1981 when he was a teenager and he realized he wanted to do a job that would make a difference.

In 1993 Hernandez was hired by the Sunnyside Police Department and has been with the department for the last 30 years. While living and serving his community in Sunnyside, his three other children Sydnee, Elijah and Makilie were born.

During his time at Sunnyside PD, Hernandez was assigned to various positions including Patrol, Detectives, School Resource Officer, and SWAT/Swat Sniper.

Sergeant Hernandez received numerous awards and commendations over the years including Top DUI Officer and Supervisor of the Year awards.

He was promoted to Sergeant in 2008 and was assigned as a Patrol Sergeant for B Squad until his upcoming retirement.

In reflection of his career, Sergeant Hernandez said, “I would like to thank God for keeping me alive all these years. I would like to thank the citizens of Sunnyside for letting me serve and protect you, keeping the streets safe. To my PD family, it’s been an honor working with you. When a major incident happened and officers were needed, I always came in. Thanks for the fun times, the rubber snakes, spiders, and jokes around the office. Most importantly, I want to thank my family for always supporting me. Every time I left the house, I always wanted a hug from you because I would never know if this was going to be the last time. A special thank you to Mom and Dad, Oscar and Yolanda Hernandez, for all your years of support. Mom, you prayed for me everyday of my career. Thank you so much! I love you! To my brother Ricky, I kept my promise, became a cop and did the 30 years! I am excited to see where God will send me and start a new chapter in my life. Semper Fi.”

After 27 years of service with the Sunnyside Police Department, School Resource Officer Sam Ramos is retiring at the end of the month on May 31.

Born in 1969 in Redmond, Oregon, to Luis and Maria Ramos, Officer Ramos is the youngest of eight siblings - Yolanda Wallingford, Elma Vargas, Armando Ramos, Estelita Sanchez, Sally Rocha, Jose Ramos and Hilda Cornwell.

As a Sunnyside native and 1988 Sunnyside High School graduate, Officer Ramos began his law enforcement career as a Reserve Police Officer in 1993 for the Sunnyside Police Department and graduated from the Yakima County Reserve Academy in Yakima.

In August 1995, Officer Ramos was hired by the Sunnyside PD, he graduated from the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission in Burien in 1996 and was assigned to the Patrol Division.

In June of 1996 Ramos attended SWAT Basic and became a member of the Sunnyside Police SWAT Team where the team served multiple felony warrants for the Sunnyside Police Department, Yakima County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, US Marshals and Secret Service throughout Sunnyside and Yakima County.

In 1997 Officer Ramos married Connie Mendoza Ramos in Prosser and was married for 23 years until her passing in August 2020.

In 1999 Officer Ramos transferred into the Detective Division where he was responsible for investigating major crimes including homicides, assaults, and multiple drug investigations until 2002.

After rotating out of the Detective Division, Officer Ramos returned to Patrol until becoming a School Resource Officer assigned to the Sunnyside School District from 2006 to 2015 where he worked closely with Sunnyside schools building positive relationships with students, staff and parents.

Officer Ramos was reassigned to Patrol and returned to the District as a School Resource Officer in 2020 where he will finish his career.

During Officer Ramos’ tenure with the Sunnyside PD, he was an Active Shooter Instructor where he trained officers throughout Yakima County. He was also a Field Training Officer, EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operations Course) Instructor, Driving Instructor and DOL Examiner for Integrity Driving School and volunteered for Nuestra Casa’s driver education program.

In June, Officer Ramos plans on taking time off to spend with family and friends, he will be taking a motorcycle trip, and begin a new career as a Safety Officer for the Granger School District where he will continue to protect and serve children and staff this August.

When Officer Ramos was asked to reflect on his police career he said, “My ‘why?’, is I watched one too many cop shows. I wanted the adrenaline rush and I also enjoy working with the public. The reason I stuck around was the way I was taken care of by my law enforcement family – always there for me even through my toughest times.”

Sunnyside Police Chief Rob Layman would like to thank and congratulate Sergeant Ollie Hernandez and Officer Sam Ramos for their loyal and dedicated service to the City of Sunnyside and our community as they retire and begin new life chapters.

A joint retirement reception to celebrate Sergeant Hernandez and Officer Ramos’ careers will be Wednesday, May 31, from 4 to 6 p.m., at the Sunnyside Law and Justice Center in the Courtroom.