Johnny Scearce received special recognition when the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) held its annual Quad Network Banquet in McCaysville Thursday, September 9.
The veteran law enforcement officer has presented a plaque in honor of his dedication and professionalism in law enforcement.
The award was presented by McCaysville Police Chief Mike Earley, who serves as assistant coordinator of the Appalachian Trail Traffic Enforcement Network for GOHS.
Earley said the award represented the appreciation of the entire state. He told how Scearce, who is chief of the Blue Ridge Police Department, gave him his start there in law enforcement.
Earley talked of Scearce’s professional, dedicated attitude in overseeing Blue Ridge officers.
He told how Scearce is continuing to recover from the infections that followed his initial battle with COVID-19. It was those infections that became a year-long battle, 120 days of which were spent in hospitals, but a battle Scearce continues to win one day at a time.
Across Georgia, 30 law enforcement officers have lost similar fights with COVID-19 and its effects. Across the nation, the number of law enforcement deaths from the virus stands at 633.
Scearce accepted the award with thanks.
He told how he got his start in law enforcement with the McCaysville Police Department in 1981 before going to Blue Ridge and spoke of his family’s history in the profession. He told the crowd of some 200 how he loved the job and it meant so much to him to be able to serve the community.
Scearce believes it was those years of service that resulted in the outpouring of community support for him and his family during his illness. That support began with prayers that went up from the time he entered the hospital to the countless number of people who lined the roadway when he returned from his hospital stay.
“The Lord has been good to me and my family,” Searce said.
He reminded the GOHS crowd of law enforcement officers, “We are here to protect and serve, and don’t ever forget that.”
The GOHS banquet brought four state traffic enforcement divisions, representing departments from Cobb County north, together at Tooney’s Music Venue.