Two Philly police officers mourned after dying on the same day in unrelated, nonviolent circumstances

Dennis Smith always called his wife, Philadelphia Police Officer Lynneice Hill, “superwoman.”

“She would do anything, really everything, for anybody,” Smith, who is also a police officer, said Saturday night. “She took care of everyone. She was just a star.”

And Stephanie Whetstone never walked into a restaurant, grocery store, even nail salon where her husband, Officer Kevin Whetstone, didn’t know someone.

“Everybody he talked to, he made a connection with,” she said. “It was crazy. Everybody loved him.”

The Philadelphia Police Department suffered a double loss on Friday after Hill and Whetstone — with a combined 39 years of service — died in separate, nonviolent circumstances.

Hill, 44, of the 3rd Police District, died Friday night after experiencing what has been described as an apparent medical emergency, police officials said.

The same day, Whetstone, 55, of the 39th Police District, died in his home, three weeks after suffering a devastating heart attack, his wife said.

Dennis Smith, assigned to the 14th District, said he and Hill grew up together in North Philadelphia. They dated briefly, but decided they were better as friends. They joined the police force a year apart. Describing why Hill wanted to be a cop, he said: “It sounds cliche but she was always in the business to help.”

Hill married and had two sons and a daughter and now has three grandchildren. She got divorced, then Hill and Smith started dating again.

This time it stuck. Monday would have been their 10th wedding anniversary.

Known as NeNe to her family, Hill was deeply religious. She was an ordained minister at Jones Temple Church of God in Christ in Fairmount and very active in the youth program. “The kids in our church just adore her,” Smith said.

Her nephew, Wallace Jones, said she had uncanny ability to know when her family needed her. He said he was in “a dark place” a few months ago and Hill called him out of the blue. “She told me to be strong and not give up,” he said. “She told me she’ll always be there for me whatever I’m going through.”

“She just had the brightest smile. It lit up the room. Her smile would make you smile,” said her uncle, Chris Alston. “She touched a lot of lives. I’m just numb right now.”

On Friday, Hill, a 24-year-veteran, was working an overtime assignment at the parking lot of the T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods stores in the 1800 block of South Christopher Columbus Boulevard, said Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw.

An officer saw her about 5 p.m. and they shared a laugh and Hill showed no sign of pain or sickness. A few hours later, people in the parking lot had seen her eating in the car when they walked into the store. Upon exiting shortly before 9 p.m. they saw her slumped over and called 911, a police source said.

After medics arrived, CPR was performed on Hill and she was taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead, said a visibly shaken Outlaw at a news conference outside the hospital about 11 p.m.

“At this time, we don’t know any additional information as to what happened or why,” the commissioner said. “As you can see behind me, there are a lot of officers here that are not only here in support, but they’re here grieving.”

Medic 43 then took her body to the Medical Examiner’s Office. Highway Patrol motorcycles escorted the unit, followed by a long procession of police vehicles with lights and sirens activated.

Outlaw said she had spoken to the officer’s husband and met with other family members. Dennis Smith told The Inquirer that the autopsy results are not yet complete, but that his wife had not been sick or suffered from health issues.

The commissioner said she had heard “nothing but amazing things about [Hill’s] dedication and her commitment to the Police Department.”

Known for her charitable work helping to feed people with cancer, Hill was a “selfless woman with a wonderful spirit,” according to Michael Rowe, CEO of Legacy of Hope, a Philadelphia nonprofit that supports people stricken with the disease.

On Saturday evening, Rowe and his team recalled how Hill had delivered groceries to people with cancer in the city twice a month for more than three years.

“She was so altruistic,” Rowe said. “She had a family member with cancer, and she worked to make our communities better places to live.”

He added, “This is a difficult time for all of us.”

In an interview with 6abc in March 2021 during one of her grocery runs, Hill said, “Coming from a family with grandparents and aunts [and] losing them to cancer, it’s no greater joy than to be able to show up at someone’s house with a bunch of groceries.”

On Saturday afternoon, John McNesby, FOP Lodge 5 president, released the following statement about Hill:

“It’s with a heavy heart that we mourn the sudden passing of dedicated police officer, Lynneice Hill. Our friend and colleague served this city for 24 years with humility, distinction and integrity. We pray for officer Hill’s family, friends and colleagues with the Philadelphia Police Department. The FOP will never forget her dedication and contributions to the police department and her community.”

McNesby also released a statement about Whetstone, saying the 15-year veteran “served his community and city with professionalism and integrity. He was beloved by his fellow officers and colleagues. Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.”

Stephanie Whetstone said her husband was “the definition of a man. He’s funny. He has wisdom. He’s smart.”

They were married four years. “I never met anybody like him who could touch so many people in so many ways,” she said. He has three adult children and together they have a 3-year-old daughter.

Whetstone had a minor heart attack two years ago, she said.

On June 22, he played basketball after work and came home and told Stephanie he wasn’t feeling well. He collapsed. Stephanie said it looked as if her husband was having a seizure. She called 911. But he had suffered severe brain damage. He never regained consciousness.

Doctors fought to save him for two weeks, but there was nothing they could do, she said. He came home on hospice care for a week before he died.

By chance, Whetstone and Smith actually knew one another. “We were in neighboring districts,” Smith, 45, said. “He was a great dude with a great personality. Really funny,” he said.

Smith last spoke with his wife Friday when he was driving home from firearms training and she was working the overtime shift.

He showered and took a nap on the couch after enduring 90-degree heat all day. When he awoke he saw he’d missed a call from his wife. But at the same time, he had a slew of messages. One was from a police supervisor who said his wife was “in distress.”

“I thought maybe she’d fainted or something. I had no idea,” he said.

“I still can’t process this. I’m devastated,” he said.

“Just devastated.”

Staff writer Robert Moran and staff photographer Elizabeth Robertson contributed to this article.