Officers salute Deputy Brett Dickey on 26th anniversary of his death
Several Gilmer County police officers gathered on a clear Saturday morning to honor and remember fallen Gilmer Deputy Brett Dickey.
It was 26 years ago that Dickey was shot and killed as he and fellow officers attempted to serve a warrant on fleeing fugitive Tommy Pickren Feb. 13, 1996.
Saturday’s memorial service began with a team of Gilmer Sheriff’s officers lowering the U.S. flag to half-mast and laying a red, white and blue wreath near a monument at the base of the courthouse flagpole dedicated to Dickey.
“It’s a very simple, short ceremony, but something we feel we ought to do every year to keep Brett’s memory and legacy alive. We will be here again next year, more than likely on the 13th,” said Sheriff Stacy Nicholson about the service.
Officers stood at salute as taps was sounded by bugle, then around the wreath and monument as Sheriff Nicholson and Chaplain Scotty Davis addressed those gathered in the courthouse parking lot.
“Brett was a friend — a friend to this community, to everybody in this community. He died protecting and serving the citizens of this county,” said Nicholson.
“The folks who worked with Brett have so many memories. The folks that were there the night he was killed, I feel certain I can speak for them in saying although we have good memories, we also have nightmares. We have to overlook them and think about the good memories. One day, if things are right with us and the Lord, we will see him again.”
During his invocation, Davis prayed for God to keep watch over Gilmer’s police officers and bring comfort to Dickey’s family, calling the fallen deputy a lost son, lost brother and lost dad.
“We have taken these moments to remember what happens day in and day out, how our community is protected by law enforcement and the other public servants who serve so diligently. God, we thank you for them,” he prayed.
Before concluding the service, Nicholson asked that attendees keep in mind the many law enforcement officers who’ve died while serving their communities.
“There’s so many, and it’s getting to be more and more every year. Remember them,” he said.
Nicholson said the annual memorial service is open to the public, not just law enforcement and family.
“We would like to see this parking lot full,” he added.