‘You will not be forgotten;’ Clark Co. Deputy Matthew Yates honored in state memorial ceremony

LONDON — The names of eight fallen law enforcement officers were added to Ohio’s Peace Officer Memorial during a state ceremony in London Thursday.

This included fallen Clark County Deputy Matthew Yates, who was shot and killed in the line of duty on July 24, 2022.

“Each of them defended our society and its values against those who seek to steal, kill and destroy,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said during the ceremony. “And everything we have today is here because they safeguarded these things with their lives In return, we promise them, ‘You will not be forgotten.’”

>> PHOTOS: Clark County deputy, Dayton officers honored at 35th Annual Ohio Peace Officers Memorial Ceremony

News Center 7′s John Bedell was with Deputy Yates’ father, Eugene Yates, and his widow, Tracy Yates, as his name was etched in stone, immortalizing his public service, sacrifice and legacy.

“I love the way people are coming out for him and respecting him and honoring him,” Eugene Yates said.

The Yates’ said events like this are not easy to bear, but they take comfort in knowing people haven’t forgotten about Deputy Yates.

“It’s tough,” Tracy Yates told News Center 7. “But to see him honored, as Gene said, it’s definitely, definitely touching.”

It’s why Yost called Thursday’s ceremony and the memorial itself “sacred.”

“It’s dedicated to holding these heroes safe from that oblivion, from not being remembered. It is to keep their names and their lives and their achievements, their service ever before us,” Yost said. “So generations to come will know they lived and that they did something worth remembering. And perhaps to set an example to which the rest of us might aspire.”

>> Previous Coverage: ‘A warrior in law enforcement;’ Community honors fallen Clark County Deputy Matthew Yates at funeral

The following officers were honored during the ceremony:

Deputy Matthew Yates, Clark County Sheriff’s Office
Deputy Robert “Craig” Mills, Butler County Sheriff’s Office
Deputy Daniel J. Kin, Wyandot County Sheriff’s Office
Officer Dominic M. Francis, Bluffton Police Department
Agent John D. Stayrook, Medina County Drug Task Force
Patrolman Sean E. VanDenberg, Lawrence Twp. Police Department
Officer Edward L. Stewart, Akron Police Department
Officer Kenneth C. Jones, Akron Police Department

There were also seven historical additions to the memorial wall, including six Dayton police officers named Troy E. Sine, Clement L. Francis, Emerson Glotfelter, Vinton E. Harsh, Edward M. Hennessey and Lawrence R. Graham. The six officers died of the Spanish flu contracted while on duty between 1918 and 1920.

News Center 7 talked one-on-one with Yost about the importance of honoring those Dayton officers more than a century after their death.

“So obviously, we had some officers that died during this pandemic in this century, 100 years ago. Even though those officers contracted that disease in the line of duty, they weren’t really recognized for their sacrifice. So it’s late, but better late than never to honor them,” Yost said.

Perry County Deputy Herbert Minshull who was shot and killed in 1945 while attempting to serve a warrant was also added to the memorial wall.

For more information on each officer’s life and legacy, you can visit the Fallen Officers Memorial webpage here.

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