Photo: Officer Gordon Beesley (provided by the Arvada Police Department) | From the Denver Channel: By: Blair Miller | DENVER – Funeral services for Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesley will be held in a private ceremony Tuesday at Flatirons Community Church in Lafayette.
The services will take place at 10 a.m. on June 29, but only family, public safety and invited guests will be allowed into the church. The ceremony will be streamed live on the Denver7+ up, Denver7’s social media pages and website.
Gov. Jared Polis ordered flags to half-staff on all public buildings on Tuesday from sunrise to sunset as well.
Read the full story here: https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/funeral-services-for-arvada-officer-gordon-beesley-to-be-held-tuesday
Tommy Nuhulu: Colorado lost a great man today. Met him decades ago when he was a drummer for one of my favorite Denver bands, Brethren Fast. Gordy was seriously one of the nicest guys I ever met and came to know.
Shot and killed in Arvada today [June 21, 2021].
I am devastated.
My heart goes out to his wife and kids.
Craziest and hardest thing…
I was high on a scaffold painting today, when talking to my friend Kathleen about making plans to see a very sick friend. She told me she had just got off the phone with his old drummer and he too, was planning to visit him. I mentioned knowing him and how, after the band, he pursued his dream of becoming an Arvada policeman.
Got home to find out he died, and called Kat to share the devastating news.
Un-freaking-believable.
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How Officer Gordon Beesley Made His Mark on Colorado’s Music Scene
From the stage to the classroom, Beesley will also be remembered for his musical talent and how he used it to connect with so many people.
By Luis de Leon, 9News | Sitting in front of a drum set and next to a coat that reads the band name, “Brethren Fast,” Nathan Nicholson reflects on his time playing alongside his friend and former band mate, Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesley.
“He was a great drummer, had a great drum kit,” Nicholson said. “He was very organized, had his own method and he always had a smile on his face. He’s back there just having the time of his life.”
Beesley and 40-year-old John Hurley, who was identified as a good Samaritan by Arvada police, were killed in a shooting in Olde Town on Monday afternoon.
A growing memorial outside of Arvada City Hall includes a few drum sticks, and that’s because Beesley was well known not only as a devoted School Resource Officer and police officer, but also a talented musician.
From the stage to the classroom, friends that knew Beesley say he will also be remembered for using that talent to connect with so many people.
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A musical mentor
Not just one band
Bringing music to the classroom
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Arvada police said the only official donation site is the Colorado Fallen Heroes Foundation. The foundation said all donations received in the next month will be given to Beesley’s family. After that time period, donors may specify that their gift is intended for the Beesley family, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Read the full story here:
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/officer-gordon-beesley-colorado-music/73-23f443e8-499e-4218-8679-535388e3d25a
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Slain Colorado officer was ‘ambushed,’ police chief says
By Phil Helsel, Yahoo News | The Arvada, Colorado, police officer who was fatally shot Monday was “ambushed” by the gunman who was also killed, the police chief said.
Officer Gordon Beesley, who has been with the police department for almost 19 years, and John Hurley, 40, of Golden, who police called a good Samaritan, died Monday, but few new details about what occurred in the Denver-area city’s historic Olde Town section were released. Police cited an ongoing investigation.
“Officer Beesley was ambushed by a person who expressed hatred of police officers,” Arvada Police Chief Link Strate said at a Tuesday news conference.
Strate also called Hurley “a true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life,” but details about what Hurley did remained unclear Tuesday.
Ronald Troyke, 59, of Arvada, was identified Tuesday by the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office as the suspect, who died in the incident.
“Detectives continue to work to determine what happened,” Strate said.
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Read more on the investigation here:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/slain-colorado-officer-ambushed-police-014424615.html
Photo: Officer Gordon Beesley (provided by the Arvada Police Department)