End of Watch Ride to Remember honors fallen CPD officer

Jill Holloway, Thomasville Times-Enterprise, Ga.
·3 min read

Jun. 25—CAIRO- Cairo Police Department honored the late Master Patrol Sgt. CJ Williams on Monday afternoon, when Beyond the Call of Duty's End of Watch Ride to Remember rolled into the parking lot.

The organization, which began in early 2020 with its first End of Watch Ride to Remember honored the 147 officers lost in 2019 with a 68-day, 18,000-mile tour of a rolling memorial. They have since continued their rides in 2020 and 2021, traveling across the country for 79-93 days a year from Spokane, Washington, honoring the fallen and their families.

On Monday, the End of Watch Ride to Remember, escorted by six Harley motorcycles, entered CPD with a 40-foot rolling memorial that pictured Williams, along with the other officers lost in the line of duty in 2022 and 2023.

Williams passed away while on duty Saturday, January 28, 2023.

According to reports, MPO Donnie Roland responded to the area of 10th Street Southwest and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in reference to assisting the Grady County Sheriff's Department with a foot chase.

Upon Roland's arrival, he was informed that an officer was down, later identified as Williams, and to send for EMS.

EMS arrived on the scene, where Williams eventually succumbed to his injuries.

At the time of his passing, CPD Chief Giovannie Santos said, "CJ was the type of person who genuinely cared about making a difference in our community and always approached duties in that respect. His interest in our youth and desire to become an officer in the city he grew up in is what stood out the most and is one of the reasons why he became a member of the department."

CPD Systems Administrator Hollie Bryant said the EOW Ride to Remember honored the huge legacy Williams left behind.

"It was an honor to be included," she said. "It was just very humbling to see all the agencies come together to honor CJ and everyone was appreciative of it."

Bryant went on to say that the moment was especially impactful for Williams' family, including his mother, stepfather, father, stepmother, fiancé and daughter.

"It was good for them to be able to have that moment and it's just awesome that there's an organization that remembers the fallen, so their memory is never forgotten," Bryant said.

Bryant explained that the EOW Ride to Remember is volunteer-oriented and open to all retired or active police officers who would like to ride with them. Beyond the Call of Duty can fly officers to various locations and provide them with a bike for those who would like to ride, Bryant said.

The organization also collects patches from all their stops to hang on a banner with handwritten messages, consoling the lost and grieving.

While some at CPD are still grieving, Bryant said if Williams had been present yesterday, he would've been found with the same huge grin he always had, telling his fellow brothers in blue that they were "doing too much."

However, Bryant disagrees, concluding that one can never do enough for the fallen who gave their life to protect others.