By Matt de Simone
Local nonprofit organization Sirens & Salutes placed memorial stones at the graves of former Roanoke City police officers last Saturday morning in Buchanan and Daleville.
A memorial stone was set for late Roanoke City Police Patrolman David Rickman last Saturday morning by his son, Chad Rickman of Roanoke. David was killed in the line of duty on April 12, 1986 after responding to an early morning domestic disturbance call. He was a U.S. Army veteran of the 82nd Airborne and had only served on the RCPD for less than one year.
David Rickman was honored by members of his family that included his son, Chad, with his wife, Abby, and son, Levi; siblings Linda Kelly, her son, Wayne Spangler and his wife, Esther, and their son, Wyatt; Sandra Rickman, and Steve Rickman and his wife, Jennifer; along with Roanoke City Police officers Lt. Jennings Tardy and Cpt. Andy Pulley, and Roanoke City Police Chaplain Darren Potter.
Lt. Tardy spoke about the brief time he spent with Rickman as a police officer and made mention that Rickman’s passing helped in bettering the department’s peer support initiative.
“At the time of David’s death, none of us had ever heard of the term ‘peer support,’” Tardy said. “We rallied around each other and supported ourselves as best we could, but we really didn’t take time to process our loss. These days, our peer support team is robust and always there in the event of a tragedy. I’m confident that David would be proud that his department has the emotional support to deal with a loss like this. I am proud to stand here today to honor David, and even though 38 years have passed, I still have vivid memories of how I felt during those days.”
Sirens & Salutes continues honoring veterans, police officers and emergency workers. David’s son, Chad, recently talked about how he learned of the memorial service honoring his late father.
“I found out (about the service) around a month or so ago,” Rickman explained. “Bill Price (co-founder of Sirens & Salutes) reached out to my aunt Linda after he found out that my dad was buried at Fairview and what his story was. My aunt is the one who manages and attends to the family plot at Fairview, so it makes sense that someone would have pointed him in her direction. I appreciate Bill and his organization for doing this and I believe their mission is a noble one. I honestly had no idea what to expect when I was told this was happening, but I think the ceremony was beautiful and dignified, and honored my dad’s memory.”
Cpt. Pulley spoke of Rickman’s legacy with RCPD and how Rickman’s story influenced RCPD’s officer survival tactics training and the department’s current peer support management.
Photos by Matt de Simone & Bill Price
“Today, in a large part due to this tragic event, many of the officers that went through this at that time who didn’t understand how to cope with and move through this tragic situation, did years of research… but they created the Roanoke Police Department Peer Support Team because of this tragic event,” Pulley said.
Pulley mentioned that the team started by Rickman’s fellow officers has helped other peer support teams at departments across the nation. “The legacy that David leaves behind, please do not worry, he is not forgotten and his spirit continues to live on every day.”
David’s legacy lives on through the department and with Chad, who revealed that he never knew of his father’s legacy with the Roanoke Police’s peer support program.
“I had no idea that my dad’s situation directly led to the creation of peer support programs to improve mental health support for officers in response to tragedies like this,” Chad said. “This really means a lot to me. I also appreciate the Roanoke police and other law enforcement organizations for participating in this. They emphasized that the department has not forgotten Dad, but honestly, I already knew this… Over the years I have kept in touch with several officers who worked with Dad, some of whom I would consider lifelong friends, almost family. I’ve always felt support and love from the Roanoke Police Department.”
Later that day, Sirens & Salutes placed another memorial stone at the grave of Roanoke City Police Patrolman George Pettit Thomas at the Amsterdam Cemetery in Daleville. Thomas succumbed to gunshot wounds on November 20, 1930, over a week after encountering a man with a handgun in Roanoke.
The Roanoke City Police Department Honor Guard fired off a three-volley salute for both Rickman and Thomas during Saturday’s proceedings.
Sirens & Salutes will join Quilts of Valor on July 20 at the Buchanan Events Center for an awards ceremony honoring local veterans who will be presented with quilts. The event takes place at 12 p.m. For more information, visit sirensandsalutes.org.
