After wearing a uniform for much of his adult life, Gary Spencer said the hardest part of his retirement will be deciding what clothes to put on every morning.

“I’ll have to decide more than just which white shirt to wear,” he said with a laugh.

Spencer, the city’s chief of police, is retiring this month after working with the police division for almost 30 years.

“It’s just the time to do it,” he said. “I’ve got 30 years and I’m getting older.”

He began as a police officer in May 1981 and worked to get every promotion he could so he could become chief of police. He achieved that goal in 2006.

Along the way to becoming a lieutenant and then a deputy chief, Spencer graduated from the FBI National Academy, Northwestern University School of Police Staff and Command, the Police Executive Leadership College and the Certified Police Executive Course.

Although he wanted to succeed as a police officer, he said he had not initially planned to become a police officer. He was just looking for a job and decided to apply.

Spencer, who grew up in Bowling Green, graduated from Bowling Green High School and attended the University but did not finish his degree. He attended the University after returning from 7.5 years of active duty in the military, which he joined in 1966.

By the time he became a student at the University, he was married and had three children.

“I just didn’t have time to keep going to school full time,” he said.

Spencer’s wife, Barbara, also grew up in Bowling Green and they met as sophomores in high school. They celebrated their 43rd anniversary Tuesday.

Spencer said he was happy to keep his family in the city, especially after knowing there is not a lot of frequent, “big” crime here.

“It’s a great community. There are a lot of good opportunities to raise a family,” he said. “I’m never sorry I made the decision to stay here.”

But Spencer said he will not necessarily miss working.

“I’ve worked my entire adult life,” he said. “This is behind me. I’m going to move forward.”

However, he said there are certain aspects of the job he will have to get used to, such as not knowing as much about issues and crime in the city.

Spencer will be leaving a job where his responsibilities included strategy, not tactics, he said. As chief of police he said he had to gain a bigger view of the police world to manage the division.

“My policy is to accomplish the mission and then take care of the employees. It comes from my military background,” he said.

Spencer said he feels fortunate that he achieved his goal of becoming chief of police.

“I could have started a little earlier, but it’s been an interesting career,” he said “I’m never sorry I chose it.”

He said he doesn’t have big plans for retirement except that he would like to spend more time with his wife as well as his son and daughter’s families.

He said he also plans to travel with his wife. They have a three-week trip planned to go to New Hampshire in July. They also hope to spend some time with his wife’s family in Florida next winter.

Spencer said he hopes to visit Germany someday as he lived there for three years when his father was stationed there while in the military.

Spencer’s last day as chief of police is March 18.

“We’ve always been pleased and excited about the work Gary Spencer has done,” said Mayor John Quinn. “He always did a good job of meeting with the public. We will miss him.”

Bradford Conner, deputy chief of police, began working with the police division two weeks after Spencer started and said he has enjoyed working closely with Spencer.

“Our careers have followed a very similar path. We’ve complemented each other pretty well. He’s been a great friend and mentor,” Conner said. “I will truly miss seeing him everyday.”

Conner said Spencer always had the best interest of the community and the police division in mind.

“He earned a great amount of respect within the community,” Conner said.

But Conner said he will continue a friendship with Spencer outside of work through their enjoyment in golf. He also said their families have grown close throughout the years and that they have even gone on vacations together.

A retirement reception will be held for Spencer on March 18 from 1:30 to 5 p.m. in the Simpson Building at Simpson Garden Park.

“People will have the opportunity to say farewell to him and make any comments about his work that they want,” Conner said.

Spencer said he gave his letter of retirement to the mayor in August to prepare the mayor for finding a replacement without being rushed. A decision hasn’t been made yet.

Quinn said four people were eligible to apply for the position and that they had to be from within the police division.

The deputy chief of police is eligible as well as the lieutenants. There have to be at least three people applying for the position. Two lieutenants, Tony Hetrick and Ken Fortney, as well as Conner have applied.

The applicants have also recently taken a civil service test and must wait for the results of the test before the selection process moves forward, Spencer said.

Quinn said a decision of who will be the new chief of police will mostly likely be made in April and that the deputy chief of police is next in command, putting Conner in charge until the chief of police is officially chosen.