One year later: Ceresco community holding memorial benefit in memory of Officer Ross Bartlett
CERESCO, Neb. (KLKN) – On April 12, 2024, Officer Ross Bartlett was killed in the line of duty while making a traffic stop on Highway 77, just south of Ceresco.
A man in a pickup truck struck Officer Bartlett’s patrol car, sending him to Bryan West Medical Center where he later died.
SEE ALSO: Hundreds pay their respects during Officer Ross Bartlett’s funeral procession
It’s a day many in the town of Ceresco will never forget.
A local firefighter who served alongside of Bartlett, Shawn Ruble, said his memory will live on.
“Ross wasn’t only a Firefighter, he was a police officer as well,” he said. “Very much a man of the people. He was a captain on the fire department, he was our training officer. Did a great job with recruiting, it’s going to be hard to replace the stuff that he has done for not only the community, but for the department as well.”
He said Officer Bartlett was a pillar of the community, and he will forever be missed.
“Overall just everything that he was able to do and the person that he was,” he said. “When it was time to work, it was time to work. When it was time to play, he was right there with you, laughing and joking and having a great time. Just overall the person he was, was amazing.”
HEARTWARMING: Watch Florida boy run mile in honor of Officer Ross Bartlett
Ruble told Channel 8 the community of Ceresco is coming together to continue his legacy with a memorial benefit.
“His family reached out to us and asked us if we’d be willing to take on the task of doing the memorial for Ross,” he said. “As the department, we wholeheartedly said ‘yes of course.’ We’ve had an awesome outreach of people willing to donate and sponsor so we can make this happen. The community is coming together as a whole for this and we’re really excited to make sure this goes off without a hitch.”
The benefit will be held at the Starlite Event Center in Wahoo on April 26th with a meal at 4 p.m. and a concert at 7:30 p.m.
