California Borough turns blue to support late police chief
Courtesy of Jeff Helsel/Cal Times
An unmarked police cruiser pays tribute to Sheehan outside the California Borough police station.
Courtesy of Jeff Helsel/Cal Times
California Borough police Chief Tim Sheehan’s firefighter uniform sits outside the local fire department in his honor.
A flower shop in California Borough was overrun by orders for blue ribbons to show support for the local police chief who died unexpectedly last week from natural causes.
A call on social media to put blue light bulbs on area porches also resulted in a shortage of them at hardware stores in a massive show of support for Tim Sheehan, 50, who died Thursday, said Tom Wilkinson, chief of the Roscoe Volunteer Fire Department.
“It’s nice,” Wilkinson said. “Tim was such a great guy.”
Sheehan also worked part time for the Roscoe-Elco, Stockdale and Allenport Regional police department, of which Wilkinson is chairman of the board.
“Tim was on duty last Tuesday joking with everybody and here it is one week later and we’re paying tribute to his life,” Wilkinson said.
The Roscoe department is hosting Sheehan’s funeral today and tomorrow after it reached out to his widow, Kim, offering the fire hall for the services.
The department is expecting a large crowd and will encourage social distancing at the services due to COVID-19, Wilkinson said.
The demand for blue ribbons was also created by a social media post, said Flowers by Regina owner Rose Livingstone, who was unaware that her store would be the place to get them.
“I bought every bit of blue ribbon from my suppliers,” Livingstone said Monday. “The phone is still ringing off the hook.”
She said she sold 300 blue ribbons and could have sold another 200 of them.
“We can’t take that money,” said Livingstone, who is donating the sale proceeds of $1,500 to Sheehan’s widow.