Annual memorial for fallen Mendota Heights officer continues to grow 10 year on
WEST ST. PAUL, Minn. — It's been 10 years since Officer Scott Patrick lost his life in the line of duty.
The Mendota Heights officer was killed while working a traffic stop in West St. Paul on July 30, 2014.
Neil Garlock was Patrick's best friend, in addition to being his boss.
"I'd always say, 'Shine your boots.' He goes, 'Neil, I got a problem with a guy that only worries about people's boots.' I said, 'Scotty I came out of the Marine Corps, that's all we do is shine our boots.'"
He says Patrick did things his own way, and was a true community officer.
"He didn't care about writing tickets or arresting anybody. That wasn't his style," Garlock said. "He was all about, you know his kids, he knows your kids type of thing."
Garlock says the only reason Patrick made the traffic stop that would be his last was because the driver was speeding in a school zone, a violation that really irked him.
But Patrick's legacy and badge number live at the site of his death, a place where Garlock now finds comfort. He also finds comfort in the growing support that accompanies each passing year.
"We started coming here in 2015 and I bet there were 30 of us. Last year, there were several hundred," Garlock said. "As people get farther away from a tragic event, less people come to their event. But Scott's event has been growing every year."
They come together in the place where Patrick lost his life, on the street that now bears his name, to remember a friend who still makes him smile.
"What would you want him to know right now?" said WCCO's Susan-Elizabeth Littlefield.
"I'd tell him to shine his boots," Garlock said.
The crowd will gather on Tuesday at noon at the corner of Smith Avenue and Dodd Road in West St. Paul.
There's also a yearly 5K run held in June in Patrick's honor. Last year, they raised $20,000 for the Special Olympics.
