A Man Of Great Heart And Great Character
Because police officers enforce the law, they can sometimes get a bad wrap. But aside from trying to keep our communities safe, they do a lot of good. They are tough men and women, but they also have huge hearts. And Jefferson County sheriff's Deputy Ric Lindley is definitely proof of this!
Credit: Facebook
Deputy Lindley has served as a sheriff’s deputy for 10 years and is a former U.S. Army Green Beret. So he knows how to be tough, when the job calls for it. But this grandfather of 7 also has a softer side. . .especially when it comes to kids. The father of 3 sons says,
“If I had the money, I'd have 100 kids.”
So when he and his partner were the first officers to roll up on the scene of a traffic accident, it soon became clear that he was right where God meant for him to be.
Credit: Facebook
Deputy Lindley and his partner, Deputy Tim Sanford, immediately began securing the scene and giving as much aid as they could to those who were injured. And that’s when Deputy Lindley noticed a young mother, about 30-yards away, leaning against her car, holding a baby.
When he approached, it was clear that this young mom was very shaken up from the accident. Her baby girl was unharmed from the accident, but was understandably upset. Deputy Lindley’s big heart swelled at the sight of a distraught baby, and he asked if he could try calming the little girl. What happened next has gone viral, and has since melted the heart of just about every person who has seen it!
Deputy Lindley took the tiny girl from the arms of her shaken mother, and held her close. He says,
“After I held her and walked a bit, she quieted down. I recalled my days as a young father, and young grandfather, and I put those skills to work and calmed the baby down. She had a very sweet little personality."
It was Deputy Lindley’s partner, Deputy Sanford, who snapped the photo of the precious moment, which has been shared nearly 10,000 times alone from the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Facebook page.
"I held her for a good while, at least an hour and a half,'' Deputy Lindley said. "I wanted to give her mother time to regain her composure. She's a young mother, and this was probably extremely traumatic for her. She was having a rough time from an emotion (sic) standpoint."
And Deputy Lindley was spot on. His act of compassion meant the world to mother, Monica Johnson, who recently reunited with the kind officers who had come to her aid. She says,
“I didn't even realize he held her. I didn't even realize we were there for as long as we were. It was a relief for him to calm her down and let me calm down as well.”
Credit: WVTM 13 News
This is just one more example of the wonderful things our brave police officers do for us. And despite all of the praise, Deputy Lindley insists he did nothing special. But Chief Deputy Randy Christian describes it perfectly by saying,
"That kind of work doesn't come through training, it comes from the heart and the kind of person you are. Great heart and character are the kinds of things we look for when recruiting. We certainly got it right on this one."
This cop bumped into the man he arrested...and God does something AMAZING!
Matthew 5:9
h/t: GodUpdates
These a cappella police officers are praising JESUS!