Pittsylvania County honors fallen officers

By John Crane

Published: May 15, 2008

CHATHAM — About every two days, a law enforcement officer in the United States makes the ultimate sacrifice.
“Every 57 hours, another law enforcement officer gives up his or her life for a stranger,” Pittsylvania County Sheriff Mike Taylor said Thursday during a ceremony honoring eight county officers who have died in the line of duty since the 1920s.
So far this year, 36 officers nationwide have died while performing their duties, he said.
The sheriff’s office held its 6th Annual Law Enforcement Memorial Service at its courtyard on Thursday, which also commemorated the nationally recognized Peace Officers Memorial Day. Area residents, local and state officials, including state Sen. Robert Hurt, and relatives of fallen officers attended the service.
During the invocation, the Rev. Dr. Jerry Foley of St. Mark Pentecostal Holiness Church said the eight local officers who died possessed the courage of Joshua while they protected people in perilous times, and like the Apostle Paul, they had vision which extended beyond their own lives.
Hurt delivered the memorial message, expressing gratitude to officers who, like the other residents of the 19th Senate District, are God-fearing, patriotic and work hard to provide for their families, he said.
Hurt reminded everyone of the importance of peace officers’ roles in search, rescue and recovery operations after the Sept. 11 attacks, one of the nation’s most tragic moments.
“It was perhaps also our finest hour,” Hurt said.
Area officers take their jobs seriously to protect and serve, he said.
“Because of them, each of us who lives here is safer,” Hurt said.
The senator also recalled his friendship with two officers who recently perished in the line of duty, Deputy Sheriff Frankie Lynn Betterton and Investigator Terry Lee Barker Sr.
The monument containing granite memorials to each of the eight officers represents the importance of their sacrifice, Hurt said.
Garry Thomas, a Ringgold resident whose grandfather, former Deputy Sheriff John Holland Thomas Sr., died from gunshot injuries in 1956, praised the sheriff’s office for the dedication it shows to its fallen.
“I’ve never seen a sheriff’s office with as much pride in their fallen officers as here,” Thomas, a special agent with Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control, said after the service.
• Contact John R. Crane at or (434) 791-7987.
Staff writer Bernard Baker contributed to this report.