SHOW LOW, Ariz. - The widow of a fallen Show Low police officer is working to help those most in need in her community with a foundation in her husband's honor set to launch before Christmas.
Cathy Reed’s late husband, Darrin Reed, died after he was shot in the line of duty in November 2016.
This tight-knit Northern Arizona community came to his family’s rescue. His family, friends and brothers and sisters in blue will give back back with a foundation in Darrin Reed’s honor, launching just more than a year after his passing.
“It’s a way of getting that community support back out there, but through the hands of the officers that see it every day,” Cathy Reed said.
The inspiration for the non-profit was the late officer’s giving spirit. Cathy remembered a person her husband touched nearly 20 years ago—not long after the start of his career in law enforcement.
“A young man came to town thinking that it would be better here for him and it wasn't,” Cathy Reed said.
That's when Darrin Reed and his fellow officers stepped in to cover that young man’s bus ticket back home.
“Years later, this gentleman came back to town and he lives here now, and he told Darrin how wonderful that help was and that it did make a big difference in his life,” Cathy Reed said.
Sgt. Kenneth Douglass remembered five years working alongside officer Reed.
“Darrin, in all the years that we worked together, he was always there to help people out that were less fortunate—even if that meant utilizing his own money,” Douglass said.
That legacy of an exemplary officer left an impression on Officer Justin Butler.
“With the way he treated people and the type of officer he was, very respectful and the community trusts him, this is just going to solidify that and to keep it going forever,” Butler said.
Beyond enforcement duties is where founders of the Darrin Reed Foundation hoped to take officers with funds to give out a coat on a snowy day or a room to spend a cold night away from domestic violence, helping this small town get through tough times.
Anyone wanting to help get the Darrin Reed Foundation off to a good start can call the Show Low Police Department at 928-537-5091 for information on how to donate.