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ST. GEORGE — A group of family came together at Town Square Park in St. George to dedicate a space to a member they had lost to COVID-19. That family was the St. George Police Department and the community they served. And that member was officer Adam Ashworth.
A memorial bench and plaque were dedicated to the 39-year-old officer and father of three who died of COVID-19 last July 22 in front of more than 50 members of the police force and the community, as well as Ashworth's widow and family.
In dedicating the memorial, which sits just to the west of the park's carousel, police Capt. Jeff Bahlmann spoke of the sense of family between officers.
"Adam was one of us. He was somebody that I go to calls with. He's somebody that, that I would go through a door with and really just go out and help people," Bahlmann told St. George News. "He's somebody that I knew personally. I knew his family and those types of things. And so it really does hit closer to home and, and really makes me appreciate it for the support and love that we have for each other."
While no St. George police officer has ever lost their life in the line of duty, Ashworth's death is the closet the department has come to that. The Officer Down Memorial Page considers police officers who died of COVID-19 as dying in the line of duty, and Ashworth is included.
Read the full article at St. George News.
KSL's Southern Utah News Section
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