HONORING HEROES
Officials pay tribute to those who died in line of duty; new plaque added
SOUTH COATESVILLE » Chester County officials Wednesday rededicated a memorial garden and added a memorial plaque for those died in the line of duty.
“It is right we should never forget those who lost their lives protecting us,” said Chester County Commissioner Michelle Kichline.
The 11 memorial plaques that had been located on the grounds of the Chester County Courthouse for the past 12 years were relocated to the Chester County Public Safety Training Campus in South Coatesville. Added was a plaque for George Parry, Goshen Fire Co. assistant fire chief who died in the line of duty on Oct. 29, 1955.
“It’s been nearly 66 years since the tragic events of Oct. 29 1955, and we have not forgotten and we should never forget the life and service of George Parry,” said Goshen Fire Co. Chief Christopher O’Neill. “This plaque will serve as a reminder for generations to come of the courage and sacrifice of those who are remembered here.”
Chester County Commissioner Marian Moskowitz said the new site is more recognizable and more secure.
“We wanted them to be in an area specifically set aside to honor those who died in the line of duty, and to keep them visible and secure,” she said.
The Chester County Hero Plaque program started in 2007 after a Hero Plaque dedication in Montgomery County. Judge John R. Bailey, former president of Chester County
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 11, approached prominent Philadelphia Attorney and local celebrity, James J. Binns, about the Hero Plaque program he created in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties to honor their fallen heroes. Binns helped to bring the program to Chester County. The Hero Plaques were given a home on the Market Street side of the Historic Courthouse in West Chester. The first plaque was dedicated in September of 2009. Over the next three years, nine police officer and two firefighter plaques were dedicated to our fallen heroes.
“This is the 310th plaque dedication I have participated in dedicating fallen police officers,” Binns said. “To the Parry family, your loved one will never be forgotten.”
Kennett Square Police Chief Bill Holdsworth said moving the hero plaque to the new location is a fitting tribute to those who died in the line of duty. Two Kennett Square police officers — Richard Posey and William Davis, who were assassinated in 1972 — are honored with plaques.
“It’s so fantastic that Chester County has come together to move these plaques over here where they are more visible,” Holdsworth said. “It reinforces what we do on an annual basis, and we can remember our two fallen officers. It really means a lot to us.”
According to the FBI, which publishes the data in the Uniform Crime Reports, from 1980 to 2018, an average of 85 law enforcement officers were killed per year. Those killed in accidents in the line of duty are not included in that number.
The Chester County law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in previous years include:
Benjamin F. Irey, Sheriff’s Department, Jan. 3, 1887; Daniel W. Guldin, North Coventry Police Dept., Dept. 10, 1958; Robert Lomas, State Police Avondale, June 13, 1971; Richard J. Posey, Kennett Square Police Dept. Nov. 15, 1972; William W. Davis, Kennett Square Police Dept., Nov. 15, 1972; Robert W. Gates, East Pikeland Police Dept. July 23, 1975; David D. Monahan, State Police Embreeville, April 17. 1980; John J. Brown, State Police Avondale, Feb. 14, 1985; and Douglas H. Pyle, Parkesburg Police Dept., Sept. 15, 1988.