BRPD officer moonlights as massage therapist - WAFB 9 News ... - WAFB.com

[massage]

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) -
A lieutenant with the Baton Rouge Police Department has taken a drastic turn in career fields.

Lt. Ray Williams served as a police officer for 26 years, and is now preparing to retire from the force after opening a massage lounge.

For 26 years, Williams served Baton Rouge as a member of the police force. He says he first met his partner 22 years ago, when they were assigned to be part of what was then an experiment in the brand new “community policing” project.

“It was new then,” Williams says. "We were the original first team, Darryl Jordan and me. We had all the housing complexes in the North Baton Rouge area.”

Williams said he first considered having a business on the side when he happened to get into trouble at work.

“I got into an altercation with a supervisor that eventually led to disciplinary action,” Williams said. “At that time, I decided I needed to do something other than police work.”

Williams’ only experience with massage was casual, something he did for friends, but he wanted to learn more. Williams attended Medical Training College in Baton Rouge for a year to learn the finer points of massage.

Williams’ Aunt owned a beauty shop and promised she’d rent him some space if he graduated.

“Turns out I graduated top five in my class,” Williams said. “I was motivated. As soon as I graduated I took both my national and state exams, passed on both on my first try, and opened my first shop.”

“It came about because I got into an altercation with a supervisor that eventually led to disciplinary action,” Williams admits. “At that time, I decided I needed to do something other than police work. I decided to go to school to learn the finer points of massage because I had been doing it casually for friends, but wanted to know more.”

“I went to Medical Training College on Airline Highway in Baton Rouge. The school lasted a year and I was motivated. As soon as I graduated, I took both my national and state exams, passed on both on my first try, and opened my first shop. My aunt had a beauty shop on South 19th Street. She had an extra room and she told me that if I graduated, she’d rent me the space. Turned out I graduated in the top five of my class and started my business,” said Williams.

Now, after almost 30 years since starting his career as a man of the law, Williams is preparing to retire.

“I just signed up for the ‘drop,’” Williams said. “I have three more years.”

Williams also attributes his decision to the physicality of the job.

“I realize there’s a beginning, a middle, and the end of everything,” Williams said. “I’m at the point I realize I’m not physically able to do the things I used to do on the job.”

“I know I’m not the same man, physically, I was as when I was young,” Williams said.

While police salary helped keep his business afloat, Williams says it hasn’t been an easy ride, especially after the August flooding.

“It affected about 90 percent of my clients,” Williams said. “So I had to make a business decision about keeping the office open.”

After the flood, Williams decided to close his brick and mortar storefront for a more mobile approach.

“I still do home and business visits,” said Williams.

He’s also catering to those who were affected personally by the flood.

“Nothing happened to my home. I had family members that were displaced and my heart went out to those flood victims,” Williams said. “I have a quite a few clients that I now treat free, while they’re trying to recover.”

For a short while longer, Williams is still on the police beat, but “Soothing Tough Massage Therapy” has a portable table and a chair that he can pack.

For questions, and to set up an appointment, please call Ray Williams at 225-268-1577. He is available from 7 a.m – noon on most days and he’s a full-time masseuse on Friday and Saturday.

Copyright 2017 WAFB. All rights reserved.

Let's block ads! (Why?)