Landon Winfield lost his father 14 years ago, but was inspired by him to try to become a police officer himself.
MARION - On an early October morning in 2004, Brandy Winfield received a call.
The Marion County sheriff's deputy was asked to check on an abandoned van that was sitting on Ohio 423.
He had followed in his father's footsteps, a detective with the Marion Police Department, by pursuing a career in law enforcement. So when the call came in, he decided to check it out.
Later that morning, the deputy was found laying in his cruiser with a gunshot wound. The vehicle had been found upside down in a ditch.
The last radio message sent to the sheriff's office described a man walking along the road carrying a gas can, according to the Star's coverage at the time.
It has been 14-years since Landon Winfield lost his father that cold morning. Now attending Marysville High School he counts the days until graduation.
He recently tried on one of his father's old uniforms that have been stored in the basement of his home.
"He looked liked his father," his mother Sara recalled. "He is a clone, down to the mannerisms and everything."
However, that day still remains a blur. Landon was 3-years-old at the time his mother received the news.
Sara had driven to the hospital to see her husband not knowing that he had been shot.
"I thought that he had been in an accident. They had found his cruiser," the widow said.
She walked into the hospital with her two sons shortly before being told that Brandy didn't make it.
Now on the cusp of adulthood, Landon wants to continue the family legacy by earning a uniform himself.
"It's in my blood," the senior said. "It's something that has been on the back of my mind for a long time."
He wants to get a degree in criminal justice and hopes to become an officer when he is old enough. According to Ohio law, you have to be at least 21 years of age when taking the civil servants exam.
Most of what he remembers of his father comes from old photos or stories from relatives. He was too young at the time to fully process what happened.
In the passing years, he visited Marion to see his father's grave or spend time with his grandparents.
Brandy's name has been read annually along with four other Marion Law Enforcement officers who lost their lives on duty. A poker run was also set up in his memory, raising more than $160,000 for local charities.
Some of that money, along with money raised by the family, went toward the purchase of a K-9 officer for the Marion Police Department.
The Dutch Shepherd was named "Six" after the fallen deputy's cruiser and unit number.
Handler Mark Elliott, who knew Brandy, remembers how he felt when heard the news.
"When you become an officer you don't expect something like that to happen," Elliott said. "It was devastating."
It is a similar tale that has been echoed by those who worked with the deputy, the last to lose his life while on duty in the county.
Elliott said he kept in contact with the family, but has become closer with Landon, who wants to be K-9 handler himself, in recent years.
"I know it's cheesy, but I can't say it enough. I am proud of him," Elliott said, who added that they have struck a solid friendship.
The high school senior has accompanied his friend during training, as he is eager to learn what being a handler entails.
"It's something (Landon) really wants to do, but he needs to get over his fear of Six first," Elliott joked.
So, when Landon said that he wanted to take his senior photos earlier this month in front of the Harding Memorial with members of law enforcement, it didn't come as a surprise.
His father, donned in uniform, took a picture there years ago.
The local K-9 units had assembled at the site along with police horses from Franklin and Delaware county.
Retired officers along with their active counterparts were there for the occasion as well. As they lined up, a local pastor asked to pray for them. It was a touching moment, Sara recalled.
However, as the event progressed, the response from Sherry Hall, the site manager, caused some controversy.
As she walked over to the group, her tone and actions left some feeling unwelcomed, Sara said.
An apology issued by Hall, the Ohio History Connection and Marion Technical College, states that was not their intention and that the site is open to the public for pictures.
The apology added that anyone who wants to take pictures at the presidential site does not need permission to do so. It added the situation helped them recognize that they can do a better job in "how we work with the community to coordinate large or unique gatherings at the Memorial."
Now as graduation inches closer, Landon said he has been keeping himself busy as he attends classes and details cars.
He said his mind is set as he patiently waits for the day he gets sworn in as an officer.
His father's killer, Juan C. Cruz, is serving a life sentence in Toledo. He pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and aggravated robbery in 2005. His first parole board hearing is scheduled for 2047.