Ross Alexander Olmos

Ross A. Olmos, 88, passed away peacefully on April 18, 2026. He was born on December 10, 1937, in The Bronx, NY, to Essie Block and Salvador Olmos. Ross received his B.S. in Criminal Justice from the University of Illinois/Chicago, his Master’s in Criminal Justice & Public Administration at Michigan State University, and his PhD in Educational Psychology at the University of Minnesota. While pursuing his undergraduate degree, he worked for over 10 years as a police officer/Sergeant for the Evanston, Illinois, P.D. He went on to become the Director of Public Safety in Bridgewater, N.J., supervising the police department of 45 sworn officers and 11 civilian personnel. He was also responsible for 3 volunteer fire departments.

In 1975, he relocated to White Bear Lake, MN, to serve as the Chief of the police department and was a Criminal Justice Planner for the state’s Crime Commission. He also served for over 7 years as the Executive Director of the MN Law Enforcement Training Center, where he developed and administered the premier training program for graduates from 19 state institutions intending to enter law enforcement. He is the author of 2 textbooks, “An Introduction to Police Community Relations” and “Traffic Enforcement and Crash Investigation.”

In 1986, he moved into the private sector as the Corporate Recruiting and Development Manager for the 2 major divisions of Josten’s Corp. He introduced a unique, structured interview format for pre-employment screening and testing of all sales, mid-management, and manager positions. For 6 years, beginning in 1992, he served as Director of Corporate Security at Caremark, Inc., managing security and loss prevention services and programs for the major healthcare corporation. He also began his own venture, SOS Consulting Services, which provided security and loss prevention services to healthcare and manufacturing clients, including Navistar, Chicago Tribune, Innovative Energy, Avon, and Beltone Hearing.

In 2002, Ross began one of his most satisfying roles as Professor of Criminal Justice at Harper College in Palatine, IL., retiring to Ocala, Florida, in 2015. Not one to pass the time idly, Ross created a weekly column for the Marion County Citizen newspaper titled Law and Order, providing in-depth interviews with local law enforcement personnel as well as anecdotal memories from his long and credible career.

While all of these accomplishments were incredible, Ross considered his greatest accomplishment and gift to be a nearly 60-year marriage to his soul mate and the love of his life, Sue. Their love was evident to anyone who knew them, and she meant more to him than all of the above combined.

Ross was known for his unshakeable integrity, insight, and willingness to listen to others, offering sage advice when needed. He found a renewed interest in art and showed several of his paintings at the Arts Club of Oak Run.

Ross is survived by his spouse, Sue Olmos, daughters Lori Klasky (Edward) and Lenee Kissel (Doug), and his six grandchildren, Alexandra Loddo, Delaney Kissel, Sean Kissel, Evan and Jessica Klasky, Emma Nassiri, as well as a half-sister, Vivian, and several cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents.

No services are planned. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to your local Salvation Army chapter, which he supported.

Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort

of feeling safe with a person;

having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words,

but to pour them all out, just as they are,

chaff and grain together,

knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them,

keep what is worth keeping, and then,

with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away.