Dr. Stephen Covey stated the actions of any police officer can impact an individual life or even a community for generations. And that is exactly what Detective Del Rio did for the past 18 years. Detective Del Rio served on the front line of the war on drugs impacting countless of individual lives, without them knowing it, and making our community a safer place to live and work all while remaining anonymous, to most, until the time of his death. Making a difference in the quality of life is an opportunity that policing provides and few other professions can offer. Detective Del Rio died while removing a massive quantity of deadly narcotics from our region.
Detective Del Rio’s death is extremely personal to me as I had the great pleasure and honor of working alongside Jorge during my last assignment with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office before being hired by Oakwood. We served together on the Dayton DEA Drug Task Force. Jorge was a tremendously kind and generous man with a great personality who was always willing to lend a helping hand to a newly assigned fellow task force officer. I saw firsthand Jorge’s daily commitment and dedication to this dangerous and critically necessary assignment.
On November 4, Jorge was shot while executing a search warrant on a drug house, something Jorge had done hundreds, if not thousands, of times before in his career. He passed away on November 7, 2019. Daily, the men and women who serve in these capacities are selflessly disregarding their own safety for the betterment of others. For those of us that have been there, we are fully aware of what is potentially waiting on the other side of that door; a world of drugs and violence and everything else that comes along with it. Many stories about dangerous drug enforcement actions are often reported in media outlets but far too often we fail to take a moment to recognize that there are men and women, such as Jorge, who are willing to give their life, in hopes of making a difference in the lives of others.
So now, we honor Jorge for his commitment and dedication to his drug enforcement work, and we remember Jorge for his contributions to making our Dayton region and beyond a better place. I pray for his wife, four daughters, and three grandchildren, along with all the people who loved and knew Jorge that they can find comfort in knowing that Jorge served his family and community with honor and valor, and had a life changing impact on countless lives.
Rest comfortably my friend, we will take it from here!”
Message from Principal Tim Badenhop – Mayor Duncan read the following note from Oakwood Junior High Principal Tim Badenhop. This note was distributed to all students and parents at Oakwood Junior High during the week of Detective Del Rio’s funeral.
“In light of a week that’s been, I’ll use this week’s brief note to share how thankful I am for the partnership we have with the Safety Department. This probably isn’t a surprise to those of you who are in the building frequently, but we have the daily opportunity to interact with officers who come by to check in, walk the hallways, and simply make their presence known to our students and staff. I think I can speak for nearly everyone in the building when I write that I feel safer each day in knowing that the department is always working to keep the community safe.
A story that is often retold in our halls dates to one morning a few years ago. Similar to what happened last week with a squirrel meeting its untimely demise in connection with a power outage, one of the furry critters blew the transformer supplying electricity to our building. A community member heard the loud noise apparently coming from the school building and called the dispatcher at the Safety Department, who in turn called OHS to check in. When that call could not be completed (due to the outage), our campus was FILLED with officers in what seemed like mere seconds. Looking back, it’s a fun story to tell – the officers were a little over-equipped to encounter a retired rodent. In the moment, though, I’m certain that the officers didn’t come to the building expecting a fun story. They came anyway. More likely, they came because. And they came prepared to do whatever would keep your children and our students, staff, and faculty safe – regardless of what that meant for each officer. I had never really doubted that they would come if there were ever a threat, but now I simply know they will.
When you get the opportunity, be sure to thank an officer. I’m sure thankful for their willing service to our students, staff, faculty, and community!”
PSO Swear-In – Mayor Duncan recognized new Public Safety Officer Kyle Sewert and his family. He then administered the Oath of Office. Chief Hill welcomed and introduced PSO Sewert. He shared that PSO Sewert has been certified and actively working in all three public safety disciplines for the past ten years. His experience and background makes him a natural fit for the Oakwood public safety organization.