Montana Mourns Slain Deputy – Wrote Letter To Wife – ‘Don’t Give In To Hate’
Hundreds of law enforcement personnel, sheriff's deputies, police officers, Montana Highway Patrol troopers, firemen, EMT's, family and friends all gathered at a church in Belgrade on Tuesday morning to honor Broadwater County Sheriff's Deputy Mason Moore.
Moore's widow spoke to the congregation at The Bridge Church, as the service was streamed courtesy of ABC/Fox Montana. She said her husband was a law enforcement professional, but he was all about love.
"Mason was tough when he needed to be, but Mason was all about love," said Mrs. Moore. "Love for his Creator, love for his family, love for his friends and love for people he did not even know."
Mason Moore did something that many law enforcement members do, he wrote a 'just in case' letter to his family.
"Mason wrote me a letter in case something like this happened, and I wanted to read you a few things out of that letter," she said through her tears. "He said don't let hate take over your life. I enjoyed every moment of life with you. Enjoy life."
Mrs. Moore asked the congregation to remember her husband whenever they encountered someone in public service.
"I would like to ask that whenever you meet a law enforcement officer, a firefighter or military personnel, please tell them that they are loved, supported and appreciated," she said. "Love wins."
Also speaking at the service was Moore's commander, Broadwater County Sheriff Wynn Meehan, who received the call early on the morning of May 16 that his deputy had not responded to his dispatcher.
"I got to Toston Bridge and my dispatch told me that the officer on scene had requested a coroner and my heart sank," Meehan said. "My heart broke. I'm a man without spirit right now, it's definitely broken. I know that everybody here has a broken spirit and a broken heart. I've met a lot of good people and unfortunately this is my third officer down and it's been tough. This one hits home, so I'm going to ask everybody to honor him and get back to it for our state, our community and our families."
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