Late Lawrence Township police officer Sean VanDenberg to be honored

The Repository
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Lawrence Township trustees

Monday meeting

KEY ACTION: Heard that township Police Officer Sean VanDenberg will be honored posthumously in both Washington, D.C., and London, Ohio, when his name is placed on two memorial walls.

DISCUSSION: VanDenberg, who died in December 2021 at age 53, will be honored at a May ceremony in Washington, D.C., when his name is added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Wall. His name joins those of over 23,000 law enforcement officers who have died in the line of the duty throughout U.S. history since 1786. VanDenberg will also be recognized on the Ohio Peace Officers Memorial Wall in London, Ohio, where his name will be added to the more than 800 Ohio police officers who have died on the job since 1823.

Trustees agreed to send two police officers to the Washington services at a cost of about $2,500. Two other officers from Lawrence Township will join them with their costs covered by the Henderson Lodge 105 of the Fraternal Order of Police in Massillon.

OTHER ACTION:

  • Authorized Fire Chief Shawn Yerian to apply for two grants to buy a brush truck to replace a 1985 truck that is out of service and to buy a power cot system to replace one that is about 11 years old. The township will pay 5% of the $200,000 cost for the truck and the $60,000 cot system, making the total cost to the township $13,333.

  • Agreed to outfit two new SUVs, one for the Fire Department and one for the Police Department, for a total cost of not more than $27,700 for the equipment and installation.

  • Agreed to pay the Lions Club of Canal Fulton $2,400 of a $2,500 grant from the Stark-Tuscarawas-Wayne Joint Solid Waste District to assist people using the township’s recycling center on Saturdays and helping to keep the site clean. The remaining $100 is used by the township to administer the grant.

UP NEXT: Will meet in regular session at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 20 at the township administration building. Executive sessions are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. when necessary. Meetings may be viewed in real time on Zoom. A link is posted on the township’s website.

Joan Porter

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Late Lawrence Township officer Sean VanDenberg to be honored