REMEMBERING ‘GREAT, GREAT COP’
Officer died weeks after being hit on his motorcycle by suspected drunken driver
SOUTH WINDSOR — Dozens of family, friends and brothers in blue gathered for the funeral service for South Windsor Officer Benjamin Lovett on Wednesday at the town’s high school.
Lovett, 25, died a few weeks after being hit on his motorcycle by a suspected drunk driver on June 26 in Tolland. He remained in critical condition at Hartford Hospital until he died on July 13.
Those who spoke told of a young man with a determination to succeed, who, though just 25, had accomplished many of his goals and encouraged others to do the same.
South Windsor Det. Cody Flannigan, Lovett’s partner, shared an excerpt from Lovett’s seventh-grade project: “The Big Book of Ben’s Bangin’ Life.” Within the book, young Lovett wrote “I am who I am. The goals for my
future are fairly realistic.”
His seventh-grade self spoke of his love for cutting grass and dreams of starting his own landscaping business, which he established in 2018 as Lovett Landscaping LLC. He dreamed of following his father into law enforcement, and joined the force in 2021. He left behind his last goal, to own a house in New Hampshire, unchecked. Despite not knowing any of this, the seventhgrader ended his book with, “my life is full of memories.”
Others who spoke at the service shared their memories of Lovett and the inspiration he left behind.
“I loved nothing more than sharing your successes and feeling happiness from your happiness,” wrote Patrick Mcpadden, a childhood friend, in a letter to Lovett after the accident. “Thank you for being my role model, my dad’s favorite son, my brother.”
“If there’s a will, there’s a ‘Ben’ way —
driven to reach goals is an understatement. You were, and I think I speak for everyone in this room and more when I say you were the biggest encouragement, supporter and motivator. You taught us and continue to teach us that anything we want, we can do. No one will ever forget the hard work and determination you put into reaching you goals,” Callie Simler said.
Many police officials said that Lovett exhibited great skill during his three years in uniform. He conducted a significant number of arrests, drug seizures, traffic stops and vehicle searches and also served on the East Central Narcotics Task Force, a regional, multijurisdictional team responsible with enforcing laws concerning narcotics and controlled substances.
Lovett received the 2018 Mothers Against Drunk Driving recognition award for the most drunken driving arrests in South Windsor. He will also be posthumously recognized for the same award for 2020.
“He carried with him the quiet, calm confidence of someone twice his age,” South Windsor Police Chief Kristian Lindstrom
said. “Ben was always pleasant, he never wore his emotions on his sleeve. And he quickly become a go-to person in the department. He was on the right track, he was on the fast track and he was a great, great cop.”
His fellow officers believed that the man Lovett was on paper only exemplified half the “awesome” man he was in real life.
“Beyond Benny’s accomplishments as an investigator and undercover officer, and again there are many, he displayed selflessness and commitment to the betterment of the union and people he worked with. Benny was always kind, humble, caring, easygoing. Rob and Diane (Lovett’s parents), Ben is everything you want your kids to be,” Sergeant Shawn Krom of the Manchester Police Department said.
As the final radio call for Lovett sounded off, his fellow officers said “his loyalty, dedication and love for his friends and family was unmatched. Ben was always there and always loved whether it was 2 in the afternoon or 2 in the morning. By far his proudest accomplishment was serving as a South Windsor police officer.”