by Tim Troglen
Reporter
Boston Heights -- The village will commemorate one of their own Memorial Day, when it dedicates a new safety officer's memorial during a ceremony at Fairview Cemetery.
Boston Heights Police Officer Jarod M. Dean died in the early morning hours of Jan. 19 on a stretch of northern Route 8 when he left his patrol car to clear debris from the roadway. He was struck and killed by a truck driver who alleges he did not see the officer.
"It was a loss to our department, and we all miss him," Boston Heights Mayor Bill Goncy said.
Officer Dean, a Hudson resident had been a member of the police department for six months, according to Boston Heights Police Chief Joseph Varga. Prior to that, Officer Dean worked in Windham for two years, Varga said.
Goncy said the loss of Officer Dean "was devastating to the community." He said Officer Dean was the first Boston Heights officer to fall in the line of duty.
Members of Officer Dean's family will be in attendance, he added. His brother, John, is an officer with the Hudson Police Department.
According to Goncy, the annual Memorial Day service for fallen veterans will be at 8:45 a.m., with the dedication of the granite stone, which will be the foundation of the safety officer's memorial, to follow immediately.
Terry Brannan, sexton for the cemetery and a member of the Memorial Association, said the 42-inch high granite boulder is located in the southwest corner of the cemetery, next to the town hall.
Brannan, a retired Sagamore Hills Police Officer, said he was proud to have taken part in the memorial, adding "it's something that should be done."
He also said he hopes Officer Dean's name stands alone and is not joined by other fallen officers in the future.
Brannan said both a bagpiper and soloist will be at the service. The soloist, his granddaughter, Teri, a junior at Nordonia High School, will sing "Wind Beneath my Wings," he said.
Christine Fenn, a member of the Fairview Cemetery Association, said donations to the memorial can be made to the Fairview Cemetery Association, care of Village of Boston Heights, 45 E. Boston Mills Road, Boston Heights 44236.
E-mail: ttroglen@recordpub.com
Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3146