To serve and sacrifice: Corrections trainees make 'Wall of Tribute' for fallen officers

Benjamin Johnson, Pensacola News Journal
·4 min read
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To serve and protect. That's the well-known motto of law enforcement agencies around the United States.

While deputies, officers, sheriffs and chiefs serve the community they protect, unintended consequences often arise in the form of officer fatalities.

Corrections class 118 of the George Stone Criminal Justice Academy decided to memorialize those fallen officers of the academy's region — encompassing Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton and Okaloosa counties — as a class project, christening the "Wall of Tribute" during Tuesday's ceremony.

Corrections officer trainee Matthew Wester reads the names of fallen law enforcement officers during a ceremony dedicating the new Wall of Tribute in their honor at the George Stone Criminal Justice Training Center in Pensacola on Tuesday. The wall honoring fallen officers from the four area counties was created by the 118th class of corrections officer trainees.

Retired Pensacola Police Department Sgt. Mike Simmons, program coordinator for the George Stone Criminal Justice Training Center, told the News Journal that this memorial project — a collection of framed photos hung along the walls of the training center — can be used to remind students of what could happen when they graduate.

"The idea is to try to have it be something that the students here will have a daily reminder of what they'll be in," Simmons said.

The Wall of Tribute features 54 officers killed in the line of duty, dating back to the late 1800s, and three law enforcement K-9s.

One of the fallen officers memorialized on the Wall of Tribute is Escambia County Sheriff's Office Deputy Morley G. "Buddy" Ray, who was killed April 7, 1978.

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His death came during his shift as a security guard at a Winn Dixie, a job he worked while off duty as a deputy sheriff. Five men attempted to rob the grocery store, and Ray was shot while defending the Winn Dixie from the men.

Ray's granddaughter, corrections officer trainee Regina Ray, is one of the soon-to-be graduates of class 118, and was given the honor of hanging Buddy Ray's memorial photo on the Wall of Tribute.

"To me it means a lot," Regina Ray told the News Journal. "I've always wanted to follow in his footsteps, which is why I became a correctional officer to begin with.

Corrections officer trainee Regina Ray hangs a photo of her late grandfather, Escambia County Sheriff's Office Deputy Morley "Buddy" Ray, during a ceremony Tuesday dedicating the new Wall of Tribute at the George Stone Criminal Justice Training Center in Pensacola. The wall honoring fallen officers from the four area counties was created by the 118th class of corrections officer trainees. Buddy Ray was shot and killed in 1978 during a store robbery while moonlighting as a security guard.

"I wanted to do the things the way he did them," Regina continued. "Start off as a (correctional officer), and then eventually transfer over to the Escambia County Sheriff's (Office) and then go on from there."

Buddy's wife, Sandra Ray, told the News Journal that she thinks that it is a "great honor" to memorialize not only her husband, but also the other fallen officers to commemorate their service to the community.

During Simmons' ceremony speech, he highlighted Buddy Ray and the impact he had on the community and his family before and after his death.

"As much as we think from a community perspective, or from a brother-sister point of view in the criminal justice community, the pain that came from his death … is excruciating," Simmons said. "For a wife and two little girls to hear they lost their father, they lost their leader, is something you can't imagine unless you're there."

Simmons went on to to explain why he spoke about Buddy's story, saying that his story illustrates what every law enforcement officer on the Wall of Tribute would do and did in their respective communities.

"One reason I wanted to highlight Buddy's story is because it is a good representation for all officers in this line of work," Simmons said. "He was doing what any good person would do. What any good father would do. What any good officer would do. He was protecting people.

"We can't ever pay him for that sacrifice," Simmons continued. "All we can do is recognize it. That is what corrections class 118 has done."

The Rev. Jim Duck, chaplain with the Pensacola Police Department, says a prayer during a ceremony dedicating the new Wall of Tribute to fallen law enforcement officers at the George Stone Criminal Justice Training Center in Pensacola on Tuesday.
The Rev. Jim Duck, chaplain with the Pensacola Police Department, says a prayer during a ceremony dedicating the new Wall of Tribute to fallen law enforcement officers at the George Stone Criminal Justice Training Center in Pensacola on Tuesday.

Simmons concluded his speech by saying that Buddy Ray sacrificed his life just as every person on the Wall of Tribute did, and they all sacrificed their life for their community.

After corrections officer trainee Matthew Wester finished the roll call of the fallen officers, the Rev. Jim Duck, chaplain with the Pensacola Police Department, closed the ceremony by giving a brief word before praying for current law enforcement officers and those in attendance.

"None of these men laid down their life for us," Duck said, referencing the Wall of Tribute. "All of these men and women that died in the line of duty put themselves in a position to have their lives taken for us. What a difference that makes, when a person is willing to give of himself or herself in a way that most of the rest of the world is not."

Benjamin Johnson can be reached at bjohnson@pnj.com or 850-435-8578

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: George Stone Corrections Academy students memorialize fallen officers