KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Deputy Tom McCutcheon, who worked for the Kent County Sheriff's Office, recently passed away.
"He was loved by so many," said his family in a Facebook post announcing his passing. "His favorite motto was 'It's in GOD's hands' and now he is at peace in God's hands."
A 13 ON YOUR SIDE viewer, Brian Kavanagh, reached out to us to talk about what McCutcheon meant to his family as he was the school resource officer at his son, Braydon Kavanagh's, school.
"[McCutcheon] made a big impact on my son who was headed in the wrong direction until he met [McCutcheon]," said Brian.
Making an impact on student's lives was something McCutcheon prioritized in his career.
In 2017 when he won Employee of the Quarter, the Kent County Sheriff's Office had a cameraman follow him in the schools where he worked.
You can see the impact he had on students and how much that meant to him in the video they shared to Facebook at that time:
“One of the things I think about in law enforcement is if you can help somebody in your career—change somebody’s life—the best place to do that is with students. If you can touch a kid’s life, you can change the kid’s life for the rest of their life," said McCutcheon in the video.
Following the news of McCutcheon's passing, the Kent County Sheriff's Office released the following statement:
KCSO offers our thoughts and prayers to Tom's family during this difficult time. Tom impacted many lives during his career. He was adored by his co-workers, friends, and the citizens he mentored.
McCutcheon's family has asked for privacy during this difficult time. They said they will share information about service arrangements when they are ready.
