Walt was my baby brother. We were two years apart. He was the only person I know that followed his dreams and became a police officer. 

I think about him every day and miss him every moment of every day.
Until we meet again Rest In Peace.
Loved you then, love you now.
Your sister,
Mary 

I worked with Walt at Robinsons Department stores in downtown L.A. in loss prevention.
I remember all of the fun foot pursuits we had together chasing down shoplifters. 
Walt was an LAPD reserve at the time. Because of him I decided to join the law enforcement. He taught me so much.
Walt was a great person who always had time to help.you when you needed it. 


I really enjoyed the wonderful pictures posted here--thank you for sharing such wonderful memories of Walt, Mary, his family and friends!  I will never forget what a wonderful friend, partner, LAPD Detective and most of all, family man that Walt was and will always be...a great influence and mentor for us all fortunate enough to have known him.  You are missed, loved and set an example for us all!  Love, Alison Alexander

Mary & Dean, almost every day I do something that reminds me of Walt, from the tie I wear with my suit, to the way I see someone cross their arms, to the attention to detail in the reports I review.  He was and always be an amazing man, friend and leader in our lives......Joe Vita

Mary and Dean,  "It was just a short time ago that we lost Walt, and I think of him often."  "I will never forget him, he was so special and taught me so much!"  Stu

I never met you, I know your sister Mary who hold you close to her heart, she spoke of you often and I know that the two of you were close.  She will miss you and I know that God will comfort her in her loss with memories and pictures of her brother Walt, I was unable to attend your service I later learned that they were so beautiful and well attended, I was out of town.  Mary may the lord make your loss an opportunity to get closer to all your loved one.

RIP Walt, miss you more now than ever, I guess that was because I knew you were there all the time. Good husband, father, cop-,son and a very kind person. Mary and Dean how are you guys doing.

Walt was one of the most incredible human beings I have had the privilege of knowing.  When it comes to character and class there are few who will ever match his consistent grace.  I will miss him and look forward to seeing him again in The Lord.

Ron Smith

Mary and Dean, the service was so beautiful, an amazing tribute to the most beloved man we know. We think of you every day and because you were all the epitome of 'grace under pressure',  our memories of Walt are of him funny, vibrant, animated and HAPPY....love you all. Thanks from all of us Kirkpatricks to all of his wide circle of friends and family for showing him the love and respect he deserved in sickness and health. What a great group!

Cathy and Bill K

There were two things that Walt cared about in life, his family and being a policeman, in that order!  Walt was a cop for more than 35 years being a detective for the last third of his career.  If you were Walt's partner or worked a case with him you knew he would always set the example at 110%.  Most folks that worked with Walt knew everything there was to know about Walt from his family and dogs to his cases and his medical history.  There are many detectives in the LAPD who are versed in the proper lipase and amylase levels one should have, what goes into knee reconstruction and the full details of what transpires in a colonoscopy.  You see, Walt was an open book….he stood ready to brief his fellow detectives in great detail on the smallest painstaking details in every situation.  But Walt was also one who stood ready to mentor his fellow investigators and to offer sound heartfelt advice to everyone, including the cops he investigated.  In the LAPD, if a tough case came up it was usually Walt who got the call.  There was a reason for that.


When a cop gets to about the twenty year mark, he or she starts to slow down.  Family commitments, the physical or mental demands of the job or just plain apathy affect most cops.  The thing about Walt was that he never fell victim to any of this.  His family always came first and he kept himself in fighting shape, even if he did walk like the tin man.  Remarkably, his tenacity and drive in his 35th year were the same as his first year.  Walt truly set the example of what a Los Angeles cop should be like.  One of the reasons that he remained a consummate professional was that he truly cared.  He cared about the job, about the people he worked with, about the victims he encountered, about the cases he worked and about not tarnishing the image of the LAPD.


As a partner or friend, you knew that Walt always had your back.  Walt would never let anything bad happen to those around him if he could help it.  Walt was a straight shooter who told it like it was.  But he did so in a way that made you respect him for having the guts to deliver whatever message he had.  Walt never realized the legacy he had created or that he would leave behind.  As he lay in the hospital, a young victim he had helped drove hundreds of miles to see him.  A young officer who Walt had mentored onto the job felt compelled to visit so that Walt would know the impact he had had on that young man.  Walt touched lives in a way that left a lasting impression and that he probably never really quite realized.   


When Walt entered the hospital most recently, he expressed a couple of fears that he had.  He first and foremost feared how this all would affect Mary and Dean.  He worried about how it would affect his friends.  Although he never truly got to enjoy his retirement as he should, Walt worried that he would be alone in his journey or that people would be afraid to come visit.  In other words, Walt as usual was more concerned with others than he was himself.  Walt probably didn't even realize the more than 8000 hits to his Caring Bridge website.  There was certainly no shortage of visitors when he was in the hospital.  His friends made sure that his fear of being alone or that no one would visit was never a reality.  That's because his friends cared about Walt.  There was a reason for that!  Walt's friends had been touched in a way that no words could ever possibly describe.  You see Walt was a better friend to those he encountered than they could have possibly ever been to him.  That's because that was what Walt was all about.  Walt was a genuine friend.  If there is one legacy that Walt left to his friends it was that anyone he ever knew or worked with could take comfort in knowing that when they too are faced with dilemmas as to what to do or say in difficult situations, all they really have to do is ask themselves what would Walt do or what would Walt say in the same situation?  The answer to that question will invariably prove to be the right thing to do.  There is no greater legacy than that!

Dear Mary, I am so sorry. What an amazing adventure you both have been on together. Thank you for sharing so many amazing photos. May love always abide and keep you comforted.

Dear Mary, our thoughts are with you during this time.   Thank you for posting the photos -- my kids and I looked through all of them and felt like we got to know Walt just a little bit.  Jasper liked the ones with the fish.  Lucy liked the ones with Walt and the dogs.  We all enjoyed the vacation pictures from the island -- particularly the grass skirt.  We celebrate his life, and are so sorry for your loss!

OBITUARY

Walter W. Hampton

October 2, 1947 – April 16, 2013

Eternal Valley Memorial Park & Mortuary

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