San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office to honor fallen deputies with monument
(FOX40.COM) – This year marks 175 years of service for the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office. In that time, the sheriff's office has lost several of its own. This year, the department hopes to break ground on a memorial monument that will honor their legacy for generations to come.
'We've had eight fallen in the history of the department. Five deputies and three constables,' Historical Committee Member Lt. Aaron Dunsing said.
Video Above: Thousands honor fallen officers during National Police Week (May 2024)
Lt. Dunsing is a 26-year veteran of the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office. 23 of those years have been spent as an honor guard member.
'With organizations this big, we have more people that are getting hired and, as time goes on people tend to forget or not remember the fallen, or they weren't around when they gave the ultimate sacrifice,' Lt. Dunsing said.
Lt. Dunsing's father also served on the honor guard and worked for the sheriff's office for over 30 years. During that time, the department lost two of its own in the 1980s, Michael Coleman and Dighton Little.
'I have a huge connection with the families, so to be a part of this memorial is just a huge honor,' Lt. Dunsing said.
The planned memorial will face south and include a wall with the names of the fallen, memorial benches with plaques for key donors, and a statue of two current honor guard members holding a folded flag.
'When the foundation presented it to me, I will not lie. It brought a tear to my eye,' Honor guard member Sgt. Jocelyn Smith said.
Sgt. Jocelyn Smith and Correctional Officer Cornell Gray Jr. were selected as models for the memorial monument, and they said it's an honor they don't take lightly. The sheriff's office said they are both honor guard members and examples of the department's best.
'Within the office, there's a spot where a lot of us walk by every day that honors our fallen,' Ofc. Gray Jr. said. 'A few of us make a point to say good night gentleman, good morning gentleman. This will be another way for us to say hello and goodbye.'
However, the new memorial monument comes with a hefty price tag of more than $500,000. About half of that amount has been raised by the community so far.
'We understand that this is a big ask, and it is expensive. 'However, the reason why is that we're building this monument so that it will last forever,' Lt. Dunsing said.
The memorial is not being paid out of the county budget or taxpayers' funding.
'It's very humbling just to be a member of the honor guard and to be a member of this department. Having a memorial outside that everyone can recognize the fallen officers, our brothers that have fallen before us so that they will never be forgotten and not only be cherished by the sworn and non-sworn members of the department but also the private citizens that come to visit,' Sgt. Smith said.
Instead, the sheriff's office says it received special permission to build the memorial with community donations.
'It's an opportunity to take that moment, recognize those that have fallen, and move into the day knowing that you're going to make a difference,' Sgt. Smith said.
The memorial and fundraising is an effort the sheriff's office believes enough people in the community will rally behind.
'This gives us a chance to spotlight our members that have fallen as well, so it means a lot to us as a sheriff's office community,' Ofc. Gray Jr. said.
There are three tiers for donors for the project, but the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office welcomes donations of any amount to go toward the memorial. There is about $261,500 still left to raise.
Tier 1 includes a memorial challenge coin and a letter of appreciation from the sheriff's office, Tier 2 includes the memorial challenge coin, letter of appreciation and a bronze plaque with the donor's name along the memorial bench and Tier 3 includes the challenge coin, letter of appreciation, bronze plaque and an 18-inch, 50-pound replica statue of the memorial monument.
'We did discuss different ideas for the project, and this was the best idea so that we can ensure it will last for many, many not years, but decades to come, so this is always going to be here,' Lt. Dunsing said.
'The fact that the community has such a big chance to be part of this memorial is amazing. It's not coming out of taxpayer dollars or anything of that nature. Everyone gets a chance to have their hands in it and memorialized in a sense as well,' Ofc. Gray Jr. said.
Anyone interested in donating can reach out directly to Lt. Dunsing here.
The sheriff's office hopes to break ground on the memorial by the end of July. Construction is expected to take about 60 days.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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