ROCKFORD, Mich. — A somber morning in Rockford as the community turned out to recognize a man who gave his all to the people and places he served.
Kent County Sheriff's Deputy David Cook passed away this week after a battle with coronavirus left him in the ICU.
A funeral procession carried his body from Pederson Funeral Home to City Church just before noon Friday, flanked by dozens of law enforcement, first responders and those whose lives he impacted.
The KCSO said more than 150 police and members of law enforcement were on hand for Deputy Cook's final sendoff.
Downtown Rockford, colored in shades of red, white and blue with dozens lining the sidewalks along Monroe, gathered to pay their respects to Deputy Cook.
A procession of dozens of emergency vehicles escorted the more than 20-year KCSO veteran along the several mile trek to Cook’s funeral service at nearby City Church.
“You want him to know that he was appreciated,” Lt. Joel Roon said. “That you appreciated who he was as a friend, as a person and as an officer. That he was valued. That you learned from him.”
Lt. Roon described the man who became both a friend and mentor as ever humble and laser-focused, despite the effect he had on those with whom he came into contact.
“There’s only a handful of officers who can make an arrest and at the jail, receive a handshake at the end,” he recalled. “Dave was one of those guys.”
The two joined up with the Kent County Sheriff’s Office around the same time two decades earlier.
Before long, Roon said, Cook had built himself a reputation as a cop who truly cared about the public he served.
“There’s just always this theme of treating people well,” he said. “That was something you saw on the calls you went on with him. He just cared about the people he was dealing with.”
A dedicated family man who never hesitated to put his wife and kids first.
A man who, beneath the badge and the uniform and the shiny exterior everyone else saw, had a playful side Cook’s friends knew well.
“He had a sense of humor,” Roon laughed. “He was super intelligent and he just had these little niche things. Great poker player.”
A massive American flag draped high above Ten Mile by ladder trucks – manned by fellow first responders as the procession neared the service—fluttered in the breeze.
A parking lot jammed with police cars and waiting complement of law enforcement in full uniform awaited at City Church just beyond.
Together, they escorted the friend and mentor they’d worked alongside all those years into the building.
A goodbye they were never given the chance to share.
“I think a lot of us are left reeling simply because you didn’t have that opportunity to say goodbye,” Roon answered when asked what he might have said. “More than what I would say, is the opportunity to say it.”
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