Hailed as an icon around the Los Angeles Police Department for her tireless volunteer work, this 90-year-old mother also carries a connection to Hollywood royalty.
Marlene Willis — the mother of famed actor Bruce Willis — has been a fixture at the station for 22 years. She’s spent more than two decades moonlighting as a volunteer at the LAPD’s West Los Angeles station, where she is affectionately known as “Mrs. Willis.”
Hailed as an icon around the LAPD for her tireless volunteer work, Marlene Willis is also mom to actor Bruce Willis. Getty Images
Officers at the station see her as an icon and say just having her around can make them smile.
“I think she means the very best of people that are individuals who believe in the work that our men and women do,” former LAPD Chief Michel Moore told NBC Los Angeles.
At 90 years old, she volunteers on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, reviewing police reports, making notes, and checking grammar.
Officers at the station see her as an icon and say just having her around can make them smile.
“I want to help so much, so much. You have no idea. You cannot imagine how much I want to help,” said Mrs. Willis.
Captain Rich Gabaldon, the West LA station’s commanding officer, doubled down on her icon status.
“Mrs. Willis is a very integral part of West Los Angeles and the LAPD,” he told the outlet.
She’s even been recognized as the LAPD volunteer of the year — an award presented by then-Chief Michel Moore.
“This is my family,” Marlene Willis said about the LAPD.
“While I can’t make her a cop, I can at least give her the greatest symbol of what it means to be a cop. And that is a badge of the law center police department,” Moore said.
Despite her connection to a major Hollywood figure, many people are unaware of her background, the outlet noted.
“She was never one to wear her identity as his mother on her sleeve or even involve him in even passing references of her life, which impressed me,” Moore said.
Although she has a famous son and other family, she told the network that she cares deeply for the department, as if they were her own.
“This is my family,” she said about the LAPD. “I mean that 100%.”