Virginia Beach officers Christopher Reese and Cameron Girvin were killed in the line of duty on Feb. 21. Reese, 30 and Girvin, 25, were conducting their midnight traffic stop, following the pursuit of a car with outdated license plates. The man driving that vehicle shot them both before turning the gun on himself, according to a Feb. 23 Virginian-Pilot article.
I would like to emphasize the beauty of these men as individuals for their sacrifice. This statement is not provoked by the connection of Reese being an alum of VWU, or either of them being police officers. Whether or not we have an emotional connection, I ask that we have rational consideration and respect in mind.
This tragic loss is not one to forget or move past lightly. Two officers were shot and killed under their oath to protect and serve. We must honor and mourn the fallen.
Their sacrifice exceeds the expectations of being heroes. Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate, in a Feb. 22 news conference said, “We asked them to go out in this community and keep us safe from evil. And last night, evil found them.”
Loss should be regarded as a time to reflect honorably, not to emphasize connections that dilute the impact of the loss itself. The loss should not be framed through its connections but rather its impact on humanity. Framing loss through its connection to ourselves directs our attention away from the tragedy against human beings.
It matters what they were to themselves: Christopher Reese and Cameron Girvin. Both leave behind their wives, and Girvin, his unborn first child.
Family members shared that Girvin wanted to be a police officer since he was 5 years old, according to a Feb. 25 Fox News article. Barbara Girvin, his biological grandmother who raised him said, “If anybody needed any help, he was the first one there. He never hesitated at all.”
“When he saw that police officers passed in the line of duty, he would kind of investigate to see what had happened, but it didn’t deter him from wanting to be one or wanting to continue,” Barbara Girvin said in the Fox News article.
Reese’s father, George Reese, said his son always wanted to help people, according to a Feb. 25 CBS News article. George Reese, a retired police officer said, “I can’t even begin to tell you how proud I am. He had goals, and I think he would have attained them.”
How they arrived at their final moments is immeasurably foundational and cannot be forgotten. A sudden end to life is always tragic, but that should not overshadow the life that preceded it. These men were and continue to be protectors who paid the ultimate price.
Their lives were cut short, and the community will forever feel the hole left by the loss of these men.
It is a time of great loss, but also a time to be thankful for the beauty of their lives and to love the way they evidently did.
They did not get to know the weight of their sacrifice, so it is with a heavy heart that I say thank you. Thank you, Christopher and Cameron, for your service. You will be profoundly missed.
By Isaac Fick
ihfick@vwu.edu