Fallen Dane Co Deputy honored by traveling End of Watch memorial

DANE COUNTY, Wis. (WMTV) - A Dane County deputy’s legacy was honored by a national group Friday, nearly one year after he died of COVID-19.

Riders with the group Beyond the Call of Duty’s End of Watch Ride to Remember made a stop at the Dane County Law Enforcement Training Center Friday morning to remember 61-year-old Deputy Rick Treadwell.

“Deputy Treadwell was a great person, a great human being, that happened to be a deputy sheriff,” said Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett.

Treadwell contracted COVID-19 while on the job. His passing marked the first line of duty death related to COVID-19 in Wisconsin. This was also the first line of duty death the Dane County Sheriff’s Office has had in 41 years.

Not only did Treadwell dedicate 25 years of his life to law enforcement, those who knew him say he was consistent and committed toward everything he did.

“Rick Treadwell represented everything that’s great in this world. He was a great man of faith, he was a great father, he was a great husband, he was a great community member, he was a great deputy sheriff and he was a fantastic trainer,” said Sheriff Barrett.

Fallen Deputy Rick Treadwell's family members take turns touching his photograph on Beyond the... — Fallen Deputy Rick Treadwell's family members take turns touching his photograph on Beyond the Call of Duty's traveling memorial.(Erin Sullivan WMTV)

Deputy Treadwell worked at the training center as a DIII-Training Deputy, which he was promoted to in 2000. The emotional moments reminded everyone present that his sacrifice will not be forgotten and his impact is resounding.

“He was fun to be around, he was actually my recruiter. He recruited me from Dallas, Texas and recruited me and told me that I was going to be the next sheriff. He told me that in 2009 and he was my trainer. He set the foundation for the success that I build upon today,” said Sheriff Barrett.

The End of Watch Ride to Remember is a journey across America, making stops like this to honor fallen law enforcement members.

“This year we’re traveling to 194 departments to honor 339 officers, going through 46 states, visiting 44 states in 84 days and 24,000 miles,” said Jagrut Shah, the Founder of Beyond the Call of Duty and End of Watch Ride to Remember.

As a former law enforcement officer himself, Shah feels the pain of each loss personally.

“We do this because I wanted the departments to know that their loss is being felt across the nation, not just in one city or one county or one state,” said Shah.

Another part of the organization’s mission is to support and connect family members that have survived this immeasurable loss.

“Really connecting the survivors with other survivors. Today with Richard’s children we are going to connect them with other children that are survivors and can relate to that pain, because that pain is different,” said Shah.