Traveling law enforcement memorial stops in Bluffton

BLUFFTON — It has been over two years since Bluffton Police Officer Dominic Francis died in the line of duty while responding to a multi-county vehicle pursuit on Interstate 75, but his sacrifice was honored again Saturday in Bluffton.

Beyond the Call of Duty, an organization that honors deceased law enforcement officers, stopped in Bluffton on Saturday with its traveling memorial to honor Francis.

Many of Francis’ family members came to view the memorial with pictures of over 200 fallen officers from 2022 and 2023, including family members Jake and Kelli Blackburn. Francis was Kelli’s first cousin.

“We both thought it really puts into perspective the number of people that we lose,” she said about the memorial.

Blackburn mentioned the day Francis died on March 31, 2022, there were four other officers in the country who died — two while on duty, one off duty who tried to stop a theft, and one who died of cancer after responding to the scene on 9/11 in New York.

“It gives you an idea of the risk they’re taking by doing these jobs,” she said.

“It should come into every small town. Everybody needs to bear witness to what our country lives through every day,” Jake said about the memorial.

Kelli knew it was Francis’ dream to become a police officer from a young age, and his dad was also in law enforcement. She discussed how her family is tight-knit and how it impacted them when Francis died.

“I grew up with him (Francis). To see what it did to my family and especially my grandparents, the pain keeps going because you see their pain,” Kelli said.

Kelli said Francis would have taken the outpouring of support after his death humbly and he would have gone back to protecting the community again if given the chance.

“He would have done it again. He would have done anything to protect this town and all of his family and friends who live in it,” Kelli said.

Jake said it’s still tough to look at Francis’ picture, and the memorial puts into perspective other families around the country experiencing the same grief.

“It’s a big hole left in communities all around the country,” Jake said about the memorialized fallen officers.

“He was a great officer, a great guy all around,” said Bluffton Lt. Matt Oglesbee about Francis. Oglesbee helped organize bringing the memorial to Bluffton. “He was very involved in the community, very respected by the community. He left a big hole. It’s things like these where we can continue to keep his memory and legacy alive.”

Reach Charlotte Caldwell at 567-242-0451.