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Fitting tribute to a fallen officer

Posted by Traci Capellman

Hundreds showed up to pay their respects to a fallen Kosciusko County police officer.  Sgt. Jeffery Shaw was killed in a car accident while on duty last week. Tuesday, hundreds lined the streets and more than 300 squad cars from all over the state came for the procession.

The rainfall seemed to reflect that somber mood of the day in Warsaw as crowds lined Main Street to pay their respects to Sgt. Jeff Shaw and his family.

 Monte Florey, one of the officer's neighbors says, "This community's pretty tight knit when it comes to something like this. I mean, they kind of come together as a community to show their respect."

 Even the elementary students braved the elements to witness what one of Jeff's neighbors called "a bit of history."

Florey says, "It's something we've never seen. This is only the third officer to die in this county in all these years, you know, in the history of the town."

They described Shaw as a wonderful officer and family man who played hard with his son, Nicholas and Nick's friends.

Paul Garza, a Fourth Grader and friend of Shaw's son says, "Me and him used to play football and I went to his house before."

 Parents like Leann Ritenour went to pay her respects to Jeff's family but she also hopes her son takes a valuable lesson away. Ritenour says, "Basically, you just don't know when's the last time you'll see someone and always remember to tell your loved ones that you love them."

Sgt. Shaw was a 14 year veteran of the department. He leaves behind a wife, a 9-year-old son, and a 7-year-old daughter.  Memorial donations for the family can be made at any First Source Bank branch.