A monument honoring the late trooper David Brinkerhoff will be unveiled during a dedication ceremony at the Middletown Town Hall at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Heather Gockel of Grand Gorge, who organized the David C. Brinkerhoff Memorial Stone Project, said she worked with state police Investigator Laura Gregory to raise the funds to purchase the black marble monument.
Brinkerhoff was killed April 25, 2007, by friendly fire during a standoff with fugitive Travis D. Trim at 1245 Cemetery Road in Margaretville. Though Trim shot Brinkerhoff once during the standoff, an investigation found the trooper was killed by friendly fire.
Middletown Supervisor Len Utter said the monument, 5 feet tall by 3 feet wide, will be placed on a slab of native bluestone with planters on either side. He said it will be located on a corner of the town hall property.
Gockel, who grew up in Margaretville, said that after Brinkerhoff's death, she wanted to do something tangible to honor his memory.
"It was something that happened in my community and I felt compelled to do it," Gockel said. "He left behind a little girl who will only know her father through the stories she hears."
Gockel said her father, Glen George, was a member of the state police for 20 years, which gave her knowledge of the dangers troopers face on a daily basis.
"I was lucky my father always came home at night," Gockel said.
Gockel said there were two fundraisers to raise the $6,000 needed to purchase the stone.
"The biggest fundraiser was a pedal car raffle," Gockel said.
Troopers Brian and William Dengler built pedal cars and offered to donate a car. Gockel said the Investigator's Union purchased four pedal-car kits, so the Denglers built them. Two cars were raffled off, one was given to Brinkerhoff's daughter, Isabella, and one was given to trooper Richard Mattson's son.
Troopers Mattson and Matthew Gombosi were separately shot while attempting to capture Trim, 23, of North Lawrence.
Trim shot Mattson and Gombosi during an 18-hour saga that began when Gombosi stopped Trim in a routine traffic stop and ended with a fiery police raid at a house on the outskirts of Margaretville. The raid also resulted in Trim's death.
Gockel said $4,000 was raised from the raffle; a memorial walk on Aug. 29, to mark what would have been Brinkerhoff's 29th birthday, raised $1,000; and the rest of the money came from donations.
The Rev. Robert Engelhardt of the Catskill Mountain Christian Center will dedicate the monument. Representatives from various police agencies and area politicians are expected to attend, Gockel said.
A luncheon for friends and family will follow at the Margaretville Fire Hall, she said.
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Patricia Breakey can be reached at 746-2894 or at stardelhi@stny.rr.com.
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