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State trooper given final salute
CAREY -- Activity in the village of Carey ground to a halt Monday as State Highway Patrolman Andrew Baldridge was remembered during a funeral Mass at Our Lady of Consolation Basilica.
Mourners, including hundreds of federal, state and local law enforcement officers from throughout Ohio and surrounding states, came to Carey on a cold, foggy Monday morning to pay tribute to Baldridge.
The 25-year-old Carey native, less than two months into his career as a state trooper with the Bucyrus post of the State Highway Patrol, was killed Thursday night in a one-car rollover accident when the cruiser he was driving went off Ridge Township 95, south of Ohio 103 and west of Carey.
On Monday, state troopers from across Ohio turned out to pay tribute to their fallen comrade. State Highway Patrol troopers from neighboring states like Indiana and Pennsylvania also made the trip to Carey to pay their respects.
But the big turnout by members of the law enforcement community was dwarfed by the number of family, friends and Carey community members who jammed the spacious church. Several mourners had to stand in the back because there was no room for them to sit.
Gov. Ted Strickland, who ordered flags at public buildings to be flown at half-staff until sunset Monday in honor of Baldridge, spoke at the memorial service.
The Rev. J.R. Hadnagy tried to sum up the feelings of many in attendance during his memorial service homily.
"He was the kind of guy you or I would want to have as a son or to have our daughter marry," Hadnagy said.
"He was the kind of person that whether he was working at the IGA, sheriff's department or coaching, he made whoever he was with feel important. He didn't think about it, he just did it by instinct.
"That's how in just 25 years he touched so many lives."
Near the end of the service, Gov. Strickland and State Highway Patrol Superintendent David Dicken both praised Baldridge's service, not only to the state patrol but also to his community.
Strickland said he heard Baldridge speak at his graduation from the State Highway Patrol academy in December, and was impressed.
"We remember a young man worthy of our tears and of our joy," Strickland said. "His record at the academy earned the respect of his fellow cadets and an invitation to be the academy's commencement speaker.
"I returned to my office and I shared with my staff how impressed I was with the eloquence of his words and the eloquent way he spoke them.
"Andrew focused his remarks on his gratitude for others, and for the support he had received from his teachers, his fellow cadets and his family.
"Andrew dreamed of being a state trooper and for that we are profoundly grateful," Strickland said.
The governor also praised Baldridge for living his life for the benefit of others as a volunteer coach, and for volunteering for the fire department and sheriff's department before realizing his dream of becoming a state trooper.
As Baldridge's body was carried out of the basilica, the hundreds of officers attending the service saluted the fallen trooper one final time. Dozens of police cars lined the streets surrounding the church, and led Baldridge's funeral procession to St. Mary's Cemetery where he was laid to rest.
As the procession left the church and made its way toward the cemetery, friends who knew Baldridge well were left to reflect on his short life.
"Andy was in my first fifth-grade class I taught at Carey," said Carey teacher and coach Eric Mullholand. "He was the perfect example for the kids in Carey. He would have done anything for anyone. That's just the kind of person he was."
State trooper given final salute
CAREY -- Activity in the village of Carey ground to a halt Monday as State Highway Patrolman Andrew Baldridge was remembered during a funeral Mass at Our Lady of Consolation Basilica.
Mourners, including hundreds of federal, state and local law enforcement officers from throughout Ohio and surrounding states, came to Carey on a cold, foggy Monday morning to pay tribute to Baldridge.
The 25-year-old Carey native, less than two months into his career as a state trooper with the Bucyrus post of the State Highway Patrol, was killed Thursday night in a one-car rollover accident when the cruiser he was driving went off Ridge Township 95, south of Ohio 103 and west of Carey.
On Monday, state troopers from across Ohio turned out to pay tribute to their fallen comrade. State Highway Patrol troopers from neighboring states like Indiana and Pennsylvania also made the trip to Carey to pay their respects.
But the big turnout by members of the law enforcement community was dwarfed by the number of family, friends and Carey community members who jammed the spacious church. Several mourners had to stand in the back because there was no room for them to sit.
Gov. Ted Strickland, who ordered flags at public buildings to be flown at half-staff until sunset Monday in honor of Baldridge, spoke at the memorial service.
The Rev. J.R. Hadnagy tried to sum up the feelings of many in attendance during his memorial service homily.
"He was the kind of guy you or I would want to have as a son or to have our daughter marry," Hadnagy said.
"He was the kind of person that whether he was working at the IGA, sheriff's department or coaching, he made whoever he was with feel important. He didn't think about it, he just did it by instinct.
"That's how in just 25 years he touched so many lives."
Near the end of the service, Gov. Strickland and State Highway Patrol Superintendent David Dicken both praised Baldridge's service, not only to the state patrol but also to his community.
Strickland said he heard Baldridge speak at his graduation from the State Highway Patrol academy in December, and was impressed.
"We remember a young man worthy of our tears and of our joy," Strickland said. "His record at the academy earned the respect of his fellow cadets and an invitation to be the academy's commencement speaker.
"I returned to my office and I shared with my staff how impressed I was with the eloquence of his words and the eloquent way he spoke them.
"Andrew focused his remarks on his gratitude for others, and for the support he had received from his teachers, his fellow cadets and his family.
"Andrew dreamed of being a state trooper and for that we are profoundly grateful," Strickland said.
The governor also praised Baldridge for living his life for the benefit of others as a volunteer coach, and for volunteering for the fire department and sheriff's department before realizing his dream of becoming a state trooper.
As Baldridge's body was carried out of the basilica, the hundreds of officers attending the service saluted the fallen trooper one final time. Dozens of police cars lined the streets surrounding the church, and led Baldridge's funeral procession to St. Mary's Cemetery where he was laid to rest.
As the procession left the church and made its way toward the cemetery, friends who knew Baldridge well were left to reflect on his short life.
"Andy was in my first fifth-grade class I taught at Carey," said Carey teacher and coach Eric Mullholand. "He was the perfect example for the kids in Carey. He would have done anything for anyone. That's just the kind of person he was."
