ORANGE PARK – Law enforcement and fire rescue agencies representing several state and Northeast Florida agencies joined forces on Thursday, May 9, at Moosehaven to honor the 12 who died in the line of duty.

The purpose of the annual Law Enforcement is never to forget their names or their service to the community. They were Sheriff Josephus Peeler, Sheriff Charles Wilson, Sheriff Theodore Cherry, Sgt. Richard Watkins, Auxiliary Dep. Arthur Caton, Dep. Wilson Walker, Sgt. Kenneth “Eddie” Hayes, Det. David White, Dep. Benjamin “Ben” Zirbel, Sgt. Eric Twisdale and Dep. Clint Seagle of the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and Green Cove Springs Police Chief Derek Asdot.

“There are no words that can assuage their emptiness,” Sheriff Michelle Cook said of the grieving families. “What I want them to know is that they will always be a part of our family, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office family. They are not going through this alone. They have an agency and a community, the Clay County community, that loves them, appreciates them, and respects them.”

“Today, we stand with them in solidarity, offering our deepest gratitude and unwavering support,” the GCSPD said. “To all law enforcement officers, past and present, we say thank you. Your service will never be forgotten.”

The first death in Clay County was on May 10, 1894, when Sheriff Peeler was shot while trying to break up an argument between two men at a train station.

Three of the fallen – Twisdale, Seagle and Asdot – died of complications from COVID-19.

The ceremony included the presentation of colors, lowering the flag to half-staff, a roll call of the fallen, a moment of silence announced by county dispatchers to all deputies and officers, a 21-gun salute and the playing of “Taps.”