Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

Rich you are so missed. I met you many times you were always one of the nices and most respectable officer I have ever know. You were your own man and never had a bad word to say about anyone your are an inspiration to all.
May God Bless you

Friend
FBIBAU

April 6, 2006

DEPUTY WEINKE,
IT HAS BEEN 8 YEARS, AND YOU WILL STILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN. YOU ARE MISSED AND LOVED.

EMPLOYEE
SAUK COUNTY SHERIFFS DEPT

April 5, 2006

Deputy Weinke,

The blood you spilled has watered many trees. Green leaves and new shoots appear where before there had been only darkness and fear.

And because of that, your call to duty will be remembered always.

Rest in peace, sir.

Paul G.
Brother, William P. Davis, EOW 11/03/2003

April 5, 2005

On the seventh anniversary of your passing you are remembered.
As I join the hundreds of police motors making their way to the memorial this May, you will be in my thoughts.
Thank you for your service.

Senior Trooper
Virginia State Police

April 5, 2005

I only had the opportunity to meet Rich one time on a prisoner transport at the county line. Little did I know that he would effect my life as much as he did. It was my first Law Enforcement Funeral. His father, and fellow officer....what a strong man! The church was packed to the max and Officers were standing outside in the rain. As the family spoke, not a dry eye was found in the building. I have never seen so many strong men, so weak and helpless, as I did at that funeral.

Two years have passed now, and Rich's memory remains with me and will forever. Each time I'm enroute to a domestic, I remember what happened to Rich. He guides me and protects me from above.

God Bless Rich's family.

Lieutenant Robert Jasinski
Juneau County SO, WI

My hero, my son, my best friend - 2years ago today we lost you, today I patrol the same highways. Today I stopped at the site where you were killed.  I turned on my lights, and like the reflections of the light in the night I reflected on our lives for the oh too short time we had together.  A void has been left in our lives that can never be filled or healed.  We miss you oh so terribly and love you always.  This poem reflects the feelings of an EMT who was there that terrible morning--A Knight has fallen and I don't know why that the young and the courageous sometimes die.  We will miss this protector and guardian of life for sometimes these things bring the greatest of strife.  Morning is breaking and God has opened his gates.  The sun is rising, it will no longer wait.  But I know in my heart as time passes by that we will remember this Knight when we see the spring skies.

H. R. Weinke
Sauk County Sheriff's Dept.-WI

I MET MEMBERS OF YOUR FAMILY WHILE ESCORTING THEM FROM THE BUS TO THE CAPITAL AT THE POLICE MEMORIAL. YOU CAN REST PEACEFULLY THAT THEY ARE STRONG IN THEIR FAITH AND THEIR LOVE FOR YOU. YOU SHOULD BE PROUD OF THE COURAGE THEY DISPLAYED WHICH WAS AN INSPIRATION TO EACH OF US THAT VERY EMOTIONALLY TRYING DAY. I PRAY FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY AND KNOW YOU ALL EXPERIENCE GOD'S PEACE, BOTH WHERE YOU ARE AND HERE WHERE WE ARE. SOMETHING MORE FOR ALL TO REMEMBER, ESPECIALLY YOUR LOVELY CHILDREN, YOU ARE NOT A HERO FOR HOW YOU DIED, BUT RATHER FOR HOW YOU LIVED AND SERVED.

Sergeant Russ Hamill
Montgomery County PD, MD

I sit in a church with my wife on this dark and rainy day, with officer from across the state. I think are paths only crossed a few times before my departure. I listen to your father talk about you and how all you wanted was to be a Sauk County Deputy. Your dad stands there with pride and tears as he tells us how that day came. Virgil took him aside and told him he was giving you a try. Your wife stands before us with pride and tears and tells how this tragic event will make her stronger. I notice things are not clear as my eyes fill with tears along with hundreds of other officers. I hold my wife's hand tight and think of my two sons. I pray for your family. I pray for all of us, as I realize we have lost another brother. I sit as Virgil talks about how out going you were. I think we have suffered another great lose. I watch as your laid to rest, and I say to myself Rich will finally be safe as god has taken him in his arms.

Patrolman C. A. Wilkinson
Oelwein Police Department, IA

I first met Rich when he rode along with his dad at the sheriff's department, then later got to know him more at the Tech College. Rich loved his job and was so proud to follow in his father's footsteps.

Harold I think of Rich often, you have every right to be proud of him and the job he did. He will never be forgotten!


The deputy sheriff stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as brightly as his brass.
"Step forward now, you deputy,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
The deputy squared his shoulders and
said, "No, Lord, I guess I ain't,
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint.
I've had to work most Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep ...
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here,
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was a silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the deputy waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God,
Step forward now, you deputy,
You've borne your burdens well,
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

Deputy Sheriff T.R. Neilson
Marquette County Sheriff's Department

The prayers and thoughts of condolence are with you from the family of an Illinois trooper killed in the LOD in 1986. Your son stopped by and visited at my home in Baraboo a few times and he was a class person. I'm sure that our tears are a sign of how proud we will always be of our special heroes. Be safe.

Bill Kugelman
Chicago Fire Dept. [ret]