Before stepping inside the Papillion Police Department, visitors are greeted by an unexpected piece of local history: a gleaming 1957 Chevrolet dressed in vintage police colors. The vehicle has never patrolled city streets or pulled anyone over, but for nearly 30 years, the classic cruiser has quietly become one of the department's most recognizable ambassadors.
"It was in 1997 that the Classic Car Club of Omaha found a '57 Chevy on a farm in South Dakota," says Officer Phillip Tackett.
The car wasn't much to look at then. Club members hauled it back to Nebraska and spent countless hours restoring it, tracking down authentic parts and bringing the forgotten Chevrolet back to life.
"They worked on it in their garage in Mr. Fricke's barn," Tackett says. "Gosh, I can't tell you how many hours."
The club had a vision.
"It was never actually a police car, but they wanted to make it a project for the police department," Tackett says.
They finished the restoration in Papillion Police colors and donated it to the department, where it quickly found an important role.
"It was kind of their public relations car for D.A.R.E.," Tackett says.
Since arriving in Papillion in the late 1990s, the Chevy has become a familiar sight at community events. It has appeared in countless parades, local festivals, car shows and even traveled to the D.A.R.E. National Conference in Nashville, proudly representing the department wherever it goes.
Few people know the car better than Tackett himself. Hired by the department in 1999, he was almost immediately entrusted with helping care for it alongside another officer. Twenty-six years later, he's still the one carefully guiding the classic Chevrolet out of its display whenever duty calls.
"It's a bear for me to get it out of that showcase," Tackett says with a laugh. "But we get it out."
One appearance is non-negotiable.
"It will be in the Papillion Days Parade until I'm gone," he says.
"I don't work on it or anything," Tackett says. "If there's anything to be done, the car club does it."
The partnership has lasted nearly three decades.
"We just have a really good working relationship with the car club," Tackett says. "Give them props for doing this for the community, which has benefitted for so long."
Like any vehicle with decades of memories, the Chevy has accumulated a few stories of its own.
Years ago, while the car was stored in a garage unit, an officer misjudged the height of the overhead door.
"The cherry on top—ripped that off," Tackett says, laughing as he recalls the decorative red beacon being knocked loose. "So, I'm very cautious when I'm taking it out of garages."
Another officer learned that driving a 1957 Chevrolet is a little different. While stopping for gas, he spent nearly 15 minutes searching for the gas cap before an older gentleman pulled alongside.
"'Whatcha doin', young man?'" Tackett remembers him asking.
The answer? The gas cap was cleverly hidden inside the car's tail fin.
Those little moments happen all the time because the Chevy bridges generations in ways few vehicles can.
"There are no buttons," Tackett says. "The windows roll down with a handle."
Children climb inside and puzzle over the manual window cranks and door locks, while older visitors light up the moment they see it.
"It's comical in a way, because kids get in there and they're befuddled," Tackett says. "I get more mileage out of the older generation, the boomers, because they want their picture taken. They remember these cars."
Today, the D.A.R.E. '57 Chevy has a permanent home inside the department's front lobby, surrounded by trophies and plaques from car shows over the years. Even the department's collectible trading card features the iconic vehicle.
Following the department's remodel, the Chevy finally found its permanent home in the front showcase.
"In a roundabout way, it finally ended up in the showcase, and I'm glad it did," Tackett says. "It's unique to the department, and it has a history. It's the D.A.R.E. '57 Chevy."
Whether it's leading the Papillion Days Parade, drawing crowds at National Night Out or simply greeting visitors from its permanent display, the Chevrolet continues doing exactly what the Classic Car Club of Omaha hoped it would nearly 30 years ago: bringing the community together, one conversation at a time.