Officers honor the fallen

The sorrowful wail of a single bagpipe echoed through the halls of the Willows Elks Lodge where most of Glenn County’s law enforcement officers and firefighters gathered Wednesday evening to honor the fallen.

The event was made more solemn by the death Monday of Nick Mondragon, who battled cancer while on the force of the Orland Police Department.

The event, organized by Willows Public Safety Association and Willows police officer and president Kelly Meek, was held in connection to National Peace Officer Memorial Week and California Peace Officer Memorial Day.

Officers from the Willows and Orland police departments, the area fire departments, the Glenn County Sheriff’s Department and the Willows area California Highway Patrol lit candles for the nine law enforcement officers and 10 firefighters killed in California in 2007.

“Our language does not possess the words to describe the honor we should pay to those who stood in the gap between safety and danger and ultimately gave their lives,” said Glenn County Sheriff Larry Jones.

As the memorial was the first of what plans to be an annual event, Jones,  Willows Police Chief Bill Spears, California Highway Patrol Commander, Greg Peck, and Willows Fire Chief Wayne Peabody each lit a candle for the four Glenn County public safety officers who died in the line of duty.

Spears paid tribute to Willows Police Chief David Markham, who died in a shootout that injured four people including the gunmen and two police officers on November 19, 1940.

Although Markham died long before Spears was born, Spears is no stranger to the loss of law enforcement officers whose names are etched into the Peace Officers Memorial in Sacramento.

Spears said he knew 10 from all branches of law enforcement, including a police officer that had been in Spears’ Explorer post as a teenager. The officer, at 22, died from a gunshot wound he received when he walked into a robbery in process.

“Regardless of the color of the uniform or the shape of the badge, each one served and protected their community,” Spears said. “They were doing what they were suppose to do.”

Jones lit a candle for Glenn County Sheriff Hall Singleton, who died while on duty in a head-on collision north of Maxwell on December 26, 1951.

Peck honored Willows CHP Officer Charles T. Smith, who died at the hands of a gunman on September 9, 1956.

Peabody honored Willows Fire Department Assist. Chief Witmer Z. Brenneman who collapsed and died fighting a fire at the historic old Jack Knight home on September 8, 1973.

Fourteen firefighters killed in the Rattlesnake Ridge fire, along with US Forest Service Officer Robert Powers, were also recognized during the ceremony.

The firefighters, from the New Tribes Mission at Fouts Springs, were killed after being trapped along with Powers on a hillside near Alder Springs on July 9, 1953. An arsonist started the fire.

On a separate table, adored with red, white and blue carnations, was a single candle for Mondragon, a “shining light” of the OPD.

Orland Police Chief Bob Pasero lighted Mondragon’s candle after speaking earlier in honor of the law enforcement officers who gave their lives in the line of duty.

Quoting the Bible, Pasero said, “Greater love has no man, but he who would lay down his life for his brother.”

Quoting Mondragon, Pasero said, “It’s all good.”

Reading a proclamation recognizing peace officer memorial ceremonies this week across the state, Mayor Jim Yoder said these special observances provide all Californians with the opportunity to appreciate the heroic men and women who have dedicated their lives to preserving public safety.

“Of all the promises America offers, none is more precious or elusive than the right to be free from crime,” Yoder said.