Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

The sound of Amazing Grace played through bagpipes can bring even the toughest cop to tears...I am no exception.

The angels are with your family, and so our my prayers.

Rest in peace my brother.

Officer J. Roed
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Police Dept.

September 20, 2003

George, you were always like a father to me. you gave me GREAT advise that i pass on to others. you always had a great smile on your face and found the best side in every situation. You taught me to be a better law enforcement officer, taught me good investigation work and how to be a better person overall. I cant thank you enough for being there for me and my family, you will always be in my heart , my prayers and thoughts. I got a st. michael necklace in 1998 with your name on it, It has been around my neck every day.

You will never be forgoten!!!

sean

Trooper II Sean
Va. St. Police

Rest in peace sarg, your tour is over. God will watch over your family now. You will be missed by your family, friends and fellow Officers.

Sgt. Brian Lakin
Harvard Univ. P.D

Yesterday, Saiosi Vanisi was sentenced to death for murdering you on January 13, 1998. I'm glad it's over, and yet it's not really over, is it? Even when they put the needle in his arm some 10 years from now, it will never be over. Your loving children and I will go on for the rest of our lives missing you. You were the center of our lives, and living without you has been a lesson in love, patience, and sadness. Meghan has blossomed into a young lady. You never got to watch Brian play football. Scott is the artist, just like you. And Kyle is having so much fun in Kindergarten. As for me, I keep the kids moving forward, so that there is little left for me. You were my anchor; my friend to share happiness and frustrations with at the end of a day. Vanisi took all this away from all of us. We miss you so much, and will every day for the rest of our lives. I look forward to seeing you again some day. Then maybe we can catch up.

I hope you are resting a little more peacefully, now that your killer has been sentenced for his crime. I will try to move on now, and leave this legal part behind. But I will always remember the love we shared, and I shall miss it forever.

Your loving wife,

Carolyn

Carolyn Sullivan

I was in Las Vegas Nevada on assignment when I heard of George's death.  I was in my hotel room, listening to the Nevada news and they were talking about the two Nevada police officers which had been killed in the line of duty.  First they talked about a Las Vegas Metropolitan police officer that had been killed, and then they said "this is the second Nevada police officer killed in the line of duty, last week Sergeant George Sullivan was killed in the line of duty...".  I don't remember much after that.  I couldn't believe it.  You hear about it all the time, but I guess it doesn't really affect you until it happens to someone close to you.  I could feel the affects physically. It was devastating.

I met Geroge in 1979 while attending the University.  I worked as a dispatcher and will always remember how George and I met.  It was kind of a rocky start, but it was the beginning of a very memorable and cherished friendship.  George helped me through several difficult times and saw me as I began my career in law enforcement.  He was a true leader and an example for every police officer.  Our friendship grew and even after I left the Nevada area, when I returned, I would always visit George and ride-a-long with him and catch up on old times.  I was an electronics buff like he was and together we were installing radios in cars or he was showing me his new "toys".

 
George Sullivan was a great person, a person whose friendship I cherished and will never forget.  He was an example for every police officer; a man with the highest integrity, courage, and honor.

George, I will always remember you and I give thanks to God that he blessed me with your friendship.

Brian M. Martin
United States Marshals Service

Dear George,

I wrote a letter to your wife, Carolyn the other day.  In it, I told her a little bit about you and the person you were while at work.  I didn't think she would know that side of you all that well.  At least not from the perspective of those who worked with you.

I remember my first day on the job.  I rode with you, remember?  I can still hear you poking fun at me about my squeeky leather and how you could always tell a rookie from the way his leather sounds.

I remember the two things you told me that I will carry with me always and will continue to pass along to less experienced officers:  "You always will get screwed by the people you give a break to", and "There are two kinds of people who work graveyard shift, those that fall asleep on occasion and those who lie."

George, you would always seem to know what to say to me when I was working under you.  You  understood the difficulties officers go through and you always had our best interests at heart.

Since my promotion in 1996, I have tried, in some small way, to emulate you and your manner with people.  I'm still trying.

We'll all miss you.  I feel sorry for those who will work here in the future and will not have known you.  We will all try hard not to let you become a "face on the wall."  You've given us enough tall tales to keep your memory alive forever.

Sergeant Mark Covington
University of Nevada Police Department

Since that awful night in January, a day has not gone by that I have not thought of George. His death has affected us all deeply.

I first met George in 1991 when I came to work at the department part time while finishing my degree at UNR. At that time I had no experience with law enforcement whatsoever, and George soon discovered that I was an easy target for his particular brand of humor.

George almost always worked swing shift, and often called the department from home during the day. When I answered the phone he would disguise his voice and pretend to be a citizen calling with some very unusual complaint. He would wait until I was completely flustered and ready to pass the call on to someone more experienced, then he would laugh and say, "Debbie, it's George." He teased me a lot, but it was always good natured, and after awhile I knew all his voices so I could play along. He had quite a sense of humor.

George always treated us "support staff" with respect, and always thanked us for our assistance in all the paper work police cases involve. Every Secretary's Day, each woman in the office received flowers and a thank you card from George no matter what her position, and he always passed out cards at Christmas. For the past two years during training programs hosted by our department, George invited me to have lunch at his table, he was the only one of our officers who ever asked me.

George loved people and was very good at putting them at ease and gaining their confidence. I once had a "power meeting" with an important person in the community regarding the donation of funds to the department. I was a little intimidated by the prospect of going alone, and asked George to accompany me. Within 5 minutes of entering the office, he and the gentleman were swapping fishing stories like old friends. I told him he had a real gift for "schmoozing." But his interest in people was genuine.

I have learned the hard lesson that you should never take the people in your life for granted because you never know when they might be taken away. I wish I had told George how much his friendship meant to me, and how much I enjoyed working with him. The department will never be the same for those of us who knew George. The feelings of sadness and deep loss over this senseless tragedy will remain with us always. We miss you George. Yours is a life that ended way too soon. May you rest in peace.

Debbie Penrod, Civilian
Unversity of Nevada - Reno Police Department

Rest in peace my BROTHER in blue. May God comfort your wife, children, and the University of Nevada - Reno Police Department during this tragic time. GOD SPEED!

Recruit Don Reichhardt
60th Basic Police Academy
Crater Criminal Justice Academy

Officer Don Reichhardt
Virginia State University Police Department

We hear a lot about you george...May god bless your family and comfort them in their time of need. You served your country well! Thank you so much for all you did for your state and your nation. you are a true hero!

VSPA

Virginia State Police Association

Kinda late getting this written. I still think of you alot and miss some good times. Every trainee I get reminds me of when you trained me. I learned alot from you that I didn't get to tell you.

Officer Osowski
UNRPD

HI GEORGEIE PORGIE!!
THIS IS ELVE BELVA FROM JOB CORP, I JUST NEEDED TO REFLECT ON YOUR LIFE BECAUSE I HAVEN'T YET. ON 8-27-01 THIS TOWN LAID TO REST ANOTHER WONDERFUL POLICE OFFICER- JOHN BOHACH- IT WAS HARD TO WITNESS BECAUSE OF ALL THE MEMORIES (GOOD) OF MY FRIEND AND FELLOW OFFICER-YOU. I SAT HERE DURING THAT DAY AND REMEMBERED HOW YOU ALWAYS TEASED ME ABOUT THE JOB CORP, MY BOSS AND HOW SERIOUS I COULD BE. ALWAYS TELLING ME "ITS NOT WORTH LOOSING SLEEP OVER" FROM THE FIRST DAY I MEET YOU,IN 1994, YOUR SMILE WAS SO INFECTIOUS AND IT "ALWAYS" EASED THE PAIN OF MY JOB AND WHAT I WAS GOING THROUGH AT THE TIME. YOU'D CALL JUST TO CHECK IN, LISTEN TO ME COMPLAIN, LAUGH AND CRY.

THE NIGHT THAT YOU PASSED, WE HAD THE BEST CONVERSATION ABOUT THE GUYS CHASING A LOOSE KID AROUND CAMPUS. AT THE END OF THAT CONVERSATION YOU SAID "BE CAREFUL AND SAFE", I TOLD YOU "DIDO BOSS". WHEN MY FRIEND CALLED THE NEXT MORNING TO TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED, I HAVEN'T BEEN THE SAME SINCE. I STILL KEEP MYSELF "SAFE AND CAREFUL" (ALMOST GOT THE S--- BET OUT OF ME BUT I AM OK), BUT THE SOUND OF THE BAG PIPES STILL MAKE ME WEEP.

YOU "ARE" ALWAYS IN MY HEART AND IN MY MIND, JUST NEEDED TO LET YOU KNOW
LOVE YA
COLEEN

COLEEN DENSON
SIERRA NV. JOB CORPS