Wednesday, May 15, 2013
As part of Police Week in Washington, Patch takes a deeper look at police fatalities. Scroll down to see more.
This week, family members and representatives from the West Bloomfield Police Department travel to Washington, D.C. to participate in ceremonies honoring Sgt. Patrick O'Rourke, and others killed in the line of duty across the U.S. O'Rourke was shot and killed in September by a man who barricaded himself in his West Bloomfield home after a domestic dispute. From postal inspectors to small-town sheriffs, Congress has dedicated the week of May 15 each year to honoring America's law enforcement officers, especially those killed in the line of duty. While the number of officers killed in the line of duty has fallen since the 1970s (see our graphic, above), more officers have been killed so far in 2013 than the same time last year, according to …
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Hundreds gathered in Lansing on Monday to honor Sgt. Patrick O'Rourke and two more officers with Michigan ties who died in the line of duty.
A West Bloomfield police officer was honored during the 20th Annual Law Enforcement Officers Candlelight Memorial Service in Lansing on Monday. Hundreds gathered for the ceremony to pay their respects for police Sgt. Patrick O’Rourke, along with two more officers with Michigan ties, Indiana Sheriff's Department Corrections Officer Britney Meux and Denver police Officer Celena Hollis, who died in the line of duty in 2012, according to the MI C.O.P.S blog. Along with bagpipes, an “integral part” of the officer memorials, according to the blog, Lansing interim Police Chief Mike Yankowski spoke during the event. "It's always to remember the ultimate sacrifices that men and women in law enforcement have given, not only for their communities but…
Monday, April 29, 2013
Patrick O'Rourke of Tyrone Township will be honored during a Law Enforcement Appreciation event on Tuesday night at Comerica Park.
Patrick O'Rourke, the West Bloomfield Township police officer who was killed in the line of duty in September, will be honored during Tuesday night’s Tiger game at Comerica Park. O'Rourke, a 1991 Hartland High School graduate, will be honored during the National Law Enforcement Appreciation event, which will take place before the Tigers play the Minnesota Twins, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund page. The game is scheduled to start at 7:05 p.m., but pregame ceremonies begin at 5:30 p.m., according to WHMI and will feature a display of area police cars in front of Comerica Park. $10 from each ticket will be donated to the Memorial Fund to help build the National Law Enforcement Museum, according to the event …
Thanks to community donations, West Bloomfield police honor guard members travel May 12 to attend National Police Week activities.
Thanks to generous donations from the community, the West Bloomfield Police Department Honor Guard will travel to Washington, D.C. next month to participate in ceremonies for WBPD Sergeant Patrick O'Rourke and other fallen officers. According to a department press release, the group leaves May 12 to participate in National Police Week activities, which will include the addition of O’Rourke's name to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. The 12-year veteran was killed in the line of duty on Sept. 9, 2012, by a man who barricaded himself in a West Bloomfield home and later died. O'Rourke's name will be added to a list of more than 19,000 officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice. O'Rourke lived with his family in Fenton. …
Monday, November 26, 2012
Family of slain West Bloomfield Police Officer finds comfort in memories as holidays draw near.
Patrick O'Rourke may be gone, but the West Bloomfield Police Officer's memory lives on in the hearts and minds of his family, friends and co-workers. Two-and-a-half months since Patrick O'Rourke, a 39-year-old husband and father of four, of Fenton, was shot and killed by a barricaded gunman, Amy O'Rourke, Patrick's widow, said that she forgives the shooter. "Forgiven," Amy O'Rourke said in an interview with the Detroit Free Press published Monday. "It's over." Police said that Ricky Coley, 50, of West Bloomfield, had been ordered out of his house as part of a divorce settlement and faced financial troubles before he began shooting. Some 20 hours later, Patrick O'Rourke's permanently-impacted police department ended the standoff by …
Friday, October 26, 2012
The owner of Parkway Chrysler in Clinton Township gifted Officer Patrick O'Rourke's widow with a fully-equipped 2013 Town and Country Thursday.
The outpouring of support for the family of slain West Bloomfield police Officer Patrick O'Rourke continued Thursday, when the owner of a in Clinton Township car dealership presented O'Rourke's widow with a new set of wheels, Local 4 reports. Mike Riley, the owner of Parkway Chrysler on Hall Road, told Local 4 that after meeting Amy O'Rourke at a fundraiser in her husband's honor, he knew he had to help in some way. On Thursday, Riley and his staff presented Amy with a fully-equipped 2013 Town and Country. "It's one of those things that you can't ever make the world right for somebody but you can help make it better," Riley told Local 4. Patrick O'Rourke was killed in the line of duty Sept. 9, when a man who had barricaded himself in his …
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Saturday's Garden Walk and Family Fun Day benefited the family of West Bloomfield Officer Patrick O'Rourke, who was killed in the line of duty last month.
The day was cold and the skies were threatening but that didn't stop people from showing their support for the Fenton family of slain West Bloomfield Officer Patrick O'Rourke. Over $12,000 was raised at the Garden Walk and Family Fun Day held at Long Meadow Elementary School. "We are all fortunate to live in a community where everyone comes together in a time of need," Rochester Chief of Police Steve Schettenhelm said. The Rochester Police Department, in conjunction with Ponds and Beyond Landscaping, hosted a day that included face-painting, pumpkin decorating, clowns and a garden walk. Funds were also raised through a raffle and silent auction. Bobbi Fedricks, owner of Ponds and Beyond Landscaping and mother of Rochester Police Officer …
Monday, October 1, 2012
Township Board honors 12-year West Bloomfield Police Officer with promotion, benefitting O'Rourke's family.
If West Bloomfield Police Department Officer Patrick O'Rourke were able to continue his heroic work, he would have likely been promoted at some point, according to Chief Michael Patton. The Township Board unanimously voted Monday night to approve a recommendation retroactively promoting O'Rourke to sergeant at its first meeting since his tragic death Sept. 9. "I remember once talking with an old command officer that when we look at who we hire sometimes, we should look at these people who will be our next sergeants, lieutenants," Patton said. "Eventually someone in the department has to rise up to that level and Pat would have been one of those individuals. "Pat had an innate leadership quality." The board meeting was the first since the …
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Thursday, September 27, 2012
Oakland County community continues benefit efforts in weeks since West Bloomfield Police Officer's death in line of duty.
Royal Oak Music Theatre will be rocking Oct. 2 with special purpose — to benefit the family of slain West Bloomfield Police Officer Patrick O'Rourke. O'Rourke, 39, was fatally shot Sept. 9 while responding with other officers to what police believed could have been a suicidal man. The incident sparked a barricaded gunman standoff that ended when police found the suspect, Ricky Coley, 50, dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. O'Rourke was the department's first officer killed in the line of duty. Birmingham-based classic rock radio station 94.7 WCSX-FM will broadcast live from the theatre next Tuesday as a host of Metro Detroit-area rock stars including Fifty Amp Fuse, Mitch Ryder and Stewart Francke perform, with proceeds to benefit a …
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The money raised will go to Officer Patrick O'Rourke's family.
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Tuesday, September 25, 2012
A Wixom business owner and a Wixom police officer made grown men cry when they delivered a check for more than $12,000 to the West Bloomfield Police Department in honor of Officer Patrick O'Rourke, a 12-year veteran who was tragically shot and killed in the line of duty earlier this month. Eddie Osman, owner of the Osman Marathon Gas Station on Wixom Road, joined Wixom’s Administrative Sergeant Charlie Yon earlier this week to present $12,207 to West Bloomfield Police Chief Mike Patton and his staff for the “Officer O'Rourke Family Trust,” which will benefit the health, education and welfare of O'Rourke's family. “There were tears coming from their eyes,” Osman said of the presentation to West Bloomfield police officers. “They were so …
stephanie pytlowanyj
7:05 pm on Saturday, October 27, 2012
What a wonderful gesture! Next time I need a vehicle I'll be sure to support this car dealership. more ›